MISSIONARY 


w -POND  -  m 


TWO 

VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES 

AMONG   THE   DAKOTAS 


OR 


THE    STORY    OF    THE    LABORS 


OF 


SAMUEL  W.  AND  GIDEON  H.  POND 

BY  S.  W.  POND,  JR. 


"  Yea,  so  have  I  strived  to  preach  the  gospel,  not 
where  Christ  was  named,  lest  I  should  build  upon 
another  mans  foundation." — Paul. 


BOSTON  AND  CHICAGO 
Congregational  ^unoag^cfjool  ano  Publishing  &onetg 


COPYRIGHT,  1893, 
BY  CONGREGATIONAL  SUNDAY-SCHOOL  AND  PUBLISHING  SOCIETY. 


PREFACE. 


THE  Dakotas  received  their  earliest  impressions  of  civilization 
from  three  distinct  classes  of  persons,  widely  differing  from  one 
another  in  character,  occupation,  and  motives.  These  three 
classes  were  the  military,  including  government  officials,  the  mer 
cantile,  and  the  aggressively  religious. 

The  influence  exerted  by  the  Fort  Snelling  garrison  on  the  great 
body  of  the  Indians  was  necessarily  limited,  and  worked  no  essen 
tial  change  in  their  character  or  mode  of  life.  No  serious  conflict 
occurred  between  the  Sioux  and  the  military  forces  prior  to  the 
year  1862,  and  the  influence  of  the  post  was  probably,  for  the  most 
part,  beneficial.  Liquor  sellers  were  not  allowed  to  enter  the  In 
dian  country,  and  an  honest  and  determined  effort  was  made  to 
exclude  all  persons  of  doubtful  character  and  antecedents,  and 
this  effort  was  fairly  successful.  In  April,  1848,  Scott  Campbell, 
the  veteran  interpreter,  was  banished  from  the  country  in  pursu 
ance  of  this  policy.  His  fault  was  selling  liquor  to  the  Indians. 

Mercantile  interests  in  the  northwest  were  represented  exclu 
sively  by  the  fur  traders,  many  of  whom  were  French  Canadians 
by  birth,  and  nearly  all  of  whom  had  Indian  families,  so  that  in 
the  last  generation  of  traders  many  mixed  bloods  were  found. 
These  traders  were  necessarily  men  of  ability,  energy,  and  sa 
gacity,  but  sadly  lacked  cultivation,  and  in  fact  many  of  them 
could  neither  read  nor  write.  Their  influence  with  the  Indians 
was,  generally  speaking,  neither  elevating  nor  improving.  There 
were  a  few  exceptions  to  this  rule,  among  which  Mr.  Renville,  of 
Lac  Qui  Parle,  may  be  classed. 

iii 


IV  PREFACE. 

There  was  the  same  antagonism  between  the  business  of  the 
traders  and  the  attempt  to  civilize  the  Indians  that  existed  in  ante 
bellum  days  between  the  institution  of  slavery  at  the  south  and 
the  attempt  to  educate  the  negroes.  The  trader's  occupation,  how 
ever  innocent  in  itself,  required  that  the  Indians  should  remain 
hunters  and  should  not  become  tillers  of  the  soil.  Oliver  Fari- 
bault  gave  expression  to  this  fact  in  the  remark  that  he  counted 'it 
a  loss  to  himself  of  five  hundred  dollars  for  every  Indian  who 
learned  to  read  and  write. 

The  trade  was  conducted  with  ordinary  fairness  as  a  rule.  It  is 
true  that  the  traders  received  large  sums  of  money  when  the 
Indians  disposed  of  their  land  by  treaty,  and  that  much  of  this 
money  was  paid  them  in  settlement  of  fictitious  accounts;  but  the 
grants  then  made  were  more  of  the  nature  of  a  bonus  or  subsidy 
for  their  influence  with  the  Indians,  and  as  some  compensation 
for  the  destruction  of  the  fur  trade,  than  as  an  embezzlement  of 
Indian  funds. 

The  Dakotas  were  fortunate  in  their  first  agent,  Major  Talia- 
ferro,  who  was  interested  in  their  prosperity  and  progress,  and 
especially  anxious  that  they  should  learn  to  cultivate  the  soil.  His 
administration,  while  not  faultless,  was  free  from  injustice  and 
corruption,  and  he  left  behind  him  a  record  of  twenty  years  of 
faithful  service,  which  had  not  impoverished  the  Indians  or  en 
riched  their  agent. 

The  government  policy  toward  the  Indians,  while  always  in  a 
measure  experimental  and  often  obviously  unwise,  has  been  often 
unsparingly  criticized,  for  faults  rather  chargeable  to  unscrupu 
lous  agents  than  to  any  inherent  defects  of  the  "  Indian  policy." 
It  is  true  of  this  as  of  most  other  human  codes  or  policies, 
"  Whate'er  is  best  administered  is  best." 

The  Dakotas  first  came  in  contact,  to  any  important  extent,  with 
the  third  or  distinctively  religious  element  at  Lake  Calhoun  in 
1834.  The  influence  of  that  contact,  soon  extended  by  others,  has 
been  manifesting  itself  to  a  wider  extent  and  in  a  more  marked 


PREFACE.  V 

character  with  almost  every  passing  year  of  the  fifty-seven  which 
have  since  elapsed.  The  stone  cut  out  of  the  mountain  without 
hands  shall  spread  through  the  whole  earth. 

The  history  of  the  work  among  the  Dakotas,  so  far  as  it  relates 
to  the  stations  at  Lake  Calhoun,  Oak  Grove,  Red  Wing,  and 
Prairieville,  has  never  been  written,  and  a  detailed  history  of  the 
years  of  weary  toil  in  the  Master's  service  at  those  four  points 
will  never  be  prepared,  for  all  the  actors,  save  one,  have  passed 
over  the  river,  and  the  only  survivor  will  never  tell  the  story  of 
those  years  and  that  work  in  which  he  was  one  of  the  principal 
actors.  All  that  the  writer  has  attempted  to  do  has  been  to  ar 
range  and  preserve  a  few  historical  fragments  otherwise  destined 
soon  to  pass  into  oblivion.  For  this  attempt  he  deems  that  no 
apology  is  necessary. 

A  short  time  before  his  death,  the  late  lamented  Dr.  Riggs  said 
in  a  letter  to  his  old  friend  Mr.  Pond  that  he  most  sincerely 
hoped  the  latter  would  write  an  account  of  the  "  pioneer  period" 
of  the  Dakota  mission,  adding  that  none  would  be  more  deeply 
interested  in  such  a  narrative  than  he.  Possibly  others  might  feel 
a  similar  interest  in  the  story  of  the  first  steps  so  laboriously 
taken. 

The  life  of  a  good  man  makes  the  world  better.  The  printed 
record  of  such  lives  extends  and  perpetuates  the  good  thus 
wrought.  We  hear  in  these  days  much  of  a  "century  of  dis 
honor,"  and  the  stories  of  cruelty,  injustice,  and  error  in  its 
treatment  of  Indian  tribes,  on  the  part  of  our  government,  are  too 
many  of  them  true ;  but  on  the  other  hand,  over  against  this  dark 
record,  we  see  an  unbroken  line,  from  the  days  of  Eliot  and 
Brainerd  down  to  our  own  day  —  more  than  two  centuries  of  liv 
ing  faith,  Christian  zeal,  and  martyr  courage  on  the  part  of  those 
who  in  weariness  and  toil  have  followed  the  example  of  their 
Master  in  obedience  to  his  last  command,  in  the  dark  places  of  the 
earth  telling  the  story  of  the  cross  to  these  same  benighted  hea 
then.  Many  of  them,  like  the  exemplary  Christian  Amos  Huggins, 


VI  PREFACE. 

have  exchanged  the  weapons  of  their  earthly  warfare  for  the 
martyr's  crown. 

The  missionary  spirit  is  not  dead.  In  the  heart  of  many  a 
young  disciple  this  zeal  for  the  salvation  of  souls  burns  with 
a  heaven-enkindled  flame,  as  bright,  as  pure,  as  ardent  as  it  once 
burned  in  the  hearts  of  those  who  established  the  first  "  perma 
nent  Dakota  mission  "  in  "  the  cabin  by  the  lake." 

MINNEAPOLIS,  November  1, 1891. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 
ANCESTRY  AND  EARLY  TRAINING. 

1830.  The  Pond  Family —  Samuel,  the  Pioneer  —  Intermar 
riage  with  the  Judsons  —  They  Locate  in  Washington  — 
Removal  to  Windham  County  and  Return  —  Apprentice 
ship  of  Samuel  and  Gideon  — Illness  at  Platt's  —  Samuel 
Teaches  School 7 

CHAPTER    II. 

NEW  LIFE  AND  NEW  PLANS. 

1830-1834.  The  Great  Revival  — One  Hundred  Converts  — 
Samuel  and  Gideon  Pond  — They  Decide  to  go  West  — 
Samuel  Leaves  Home  —  Incidents  of  the  Journey  —  Down 
the  Ohio  — Arrives  at  Galena— The  Cholera  — Journey  to 
Chicago  —  Learns  of  the  Dakotas  —  Decides  on  a  Mission 
to  the  Dakotas  —  Gideon  Arrives  —  They  Embark  for  Fort 
Snelling 12 

CHAPTER    III. 

AMONG  THE  DAKOTAS. 

1834.  The  Upper  Mississippi  —  First  Dakotas  —  First  Lessons 
—  Fort  Snelling  — Indians,  Traders,  etc.  — Agent  Talia- 
ferro  —  Missionary  Boutwell  —  Unforeseen  Obstacles  — 
Plowing  for  Big  Thunder  —Dr.  Williamson  Arrives  —  First 
View  of  St.  Anthony  Falls  . 25 

CHAPTER    IV. 

THE  CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE. 

1834.  The  Cabin  by  the  Lake  — Chain  of  Lakes— Lake  Cal- 
houn  Band  — Chief  Man-of-the-Sky  —  He  Selects  a  Site  — 

vii 


yiii  CONTENTS. 

Battle  with  Mosquitoes  —  Commercial  Transactions —Va 
ried  Fare  —  A  Letter  Home     36 

CHAPTER    V. 

THE  NEW  LANGUAGE. 

1834-1835.  The  New  Language  —  Its  Peculiar  Features  —  The 
Orthography  —  Lieutenant  Ogden's  Vocabulary  —  Walking- 
bell-ringer,  the  First  Dakota  Reader  —  Deer  and  Wolves 
—Frozen  Potatoes  — The  New  Names 50 

CHAPTER    VI. 

NEW  LABORERS  AND  MODIFIED  PLANS. 

1835-1836.  Arrival  of  Reinforcements  —  Major  Loomis  —  Mis 
sion  Prospects — Revival  at  Fort  Snelling  —  First  Christian 
Church  Organized  —  Mission  House  at  Lake  Harriet  — 
S.  W.  Pond  Goes  Hunting— A  Month  in  a  Tepee  — The 
Lady  of  the  Lake  —  Some  other  People 60 

CHAPTER    VII. 

A  PERILOUS  WINTER  JOURNEY. 

1836-1837.  Perils  on  the  Prairie  —  A  Winter  Journey  — 
Skadan,  or  Le  Blanc  — Picture  Writing  — A  Little  Starva 
tion —  Muskrats  and  Dancing  —  Ma-Ma  the  Guide — Five 
Days' Fast  —  A  Prairie  Blizzard  —  Ma-Ma  Meditates  Mur 
der —  They  Part  Company  —  Renville's  Horses  —  Lac  Qui 
Parle  and  Friends  —  Muskrat  Fare  in  Camp  —  Long  Day's 
Journey  .....  74 

CHAPTER    VIII. 

LIFE  AT  LAC  QUI  PARLE. 

1836-1839.  Lac  Qui  Parle  Mission  —  Joseph  Renville  —  Gkleon 
Pond  Leaves  Lake  Harriet  —  Hard  Labor  Building — Trans 
lations—Indian  Dance  — Wanmdi-Okiye,  or  Eagle  Help 

—  Mr.  Pond's  Marriage  — A  Wedding  Feast  — Off  on  a 
Hunt  —  Exposure  and  Starvation  —  Massacre  and  Escape 

—  Round- Wind  and  Mr.  Pond,  the  Burial  Party  — Trip  to 
Mendota  —  Impromptu  Immersion  —  Alone  with  the  Small 
pox  —  Gavin  the  Swiss 91 


CONTENTS.  ix 

CHAPTER    IX. 

THE  FUR  TRADE  OR  THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY. 

1836-1837.  A  Business  Proposition  —  It  is  Rejected  —  Samuel 
Pond  Returns  to  Connecticut  —  Studies  Theology  and  Greek 

—  Ordained  to  the  Ministry  — Returns  to  the  Field  — Meets 
Daniel  Gavin  — Mr.  Riggs  Arrives  —  Story  of  Joseph  Pub 
lished— Walking-bell-ringer  Prays  —  Treaty  of  1837  —Mr. 
Prescott  Marries  —  Three  Months  in  an   Indian  Tent- 
Trip  to  the  Traverse  —  Return  to  Lake  Harriet    .    .    .    .107 

CHAPTER    X. 

WEDDING  FESTIVITIES  AT  LAKE  HARRIET. 

1838-1839.  The  First  Wedding  — The  Festivities  —  Military 
Guests  —  Dr.  Emerson,  Owner  of  Dred  Scott  —  An  Upper 
Chamber  — The  Indian  Farming  — Gideon  Pond  Returns 

—  Indian  Warfare 129 

CHAPTER    XI. 

THE  MASSACRE  AT  RUM  RIVER  AND  WHAT  FOLLOWED. 

1839.  Massacre  of  Rum  River— Red-Bird,  the  War  Chief  — 
His  Character  — An  Incident  — Ojibways  at  Fort  Snelling 

—  Rupacoka-Maza  Assassinated  —  Revenge  Planned  —  The 
Gathering  Clans  —  Plans  Executed  —  What  Followed    .    .  139 

CHAPTER    XII. 

MURDER  OF  CHIEF  DRIFTER. 

1840-1842.  The  Rival  Chief  — The  Indians  Removed  — 
Kahboka  Murdered  — Pioneer  Characters  —  Translations 
Printed— Annual  Meeting 150 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

A  YEAR  AT  LAC  QUI  PARLE. 

1842-1843.  To  Lac  Qui  Parle  —  Little  Jennette  —  An  Anxious 
Journey  —  A  Killing  Frost  —  Civilization  at  the  Lake  — 
Dr.  Williamson's  Characteristics  —  A  Church  Trial  — Mr. 


CONTENTS. 


Riggs  Returns  — Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hopkins  Arrive  — Trip 
Down  the  Minnesota — Indian  Attack  —  Mission  House  at 
Oak  Grove  —  Gideon  Pond  in  Connecticut 159 

CHAPTER    XIV. 

TROUBLE  AT  THE  TRAVERSE  AND  BLOOMINGTON. 

1843-1846.  Trouble  at  the  Traverse  — Mr.  Riggs  Shot  at  — 
S.  W.  Pond  Attacked  — He  Makes  Complaint— The  Assail 
ant  Arrested  —  Is  Released  — A  Mild  Winter—  Great  Mor 
tality— Drunken  Frolic— The  Suicide— Rescued  by  Jane 
—  The  Gavins  Leave  the  Mission  ...  170 

CHAPTER    XV. 

THE  NEW  STATION  AT  PRAIRIEVILLE. 

1846-1849.  Shakpe's  Proposition  —  A  New  Station  —  Prepara 
tions  for  Building  — The  Village  and  the  Mission  House  — 
Xakpedan  the  Orator  —  Indians  Steal  Sometimes  —  Watch 
Poisoned  — Missionaries  as  Medical  Practitioners  .  .  .  .180 

CHAPTER    XVI. 

THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  SHADOW. 

1850-1852.  A  Cold  Night  and  Crushed  Ankle  —  Impromptu 
Surgery  — Klepper  and  his  Skeleton  — Journey  Home  — 
Mrs.  Pond's  Last  Words 197 

CHAPTER    XVII. 

THE  DAKOTA  FRIEND.  —  ANOTHER  BEREAVEMENT. 

1846-1852.  Oak  Grove  Mission  — Drunkenness  Increasing  — 
G.  H.  Pond  Ordained  —  A  Member  of  the  Legislature  —  Is 
also  an  Editor  —  The  Dakota  Friend  —  Governor  Ramsey's 
Kindness  — Mrs.  Pond  Called  Home 203 

CHAPTER    XVIII. 

THE  NEW  TREATY  AND  WHAT  FOLLOWED. 

1846-1852.  Other  Stations  —  Dr.  Williamson  at  Kaposia  —  Mr. 
Riggs  at  Traverse  des  Sioux  — Mr.  Hopkins  Drowned  — 


CONTENTS.  xi 

Treaties  of  1851  — Indians  Removed  to  the  Reservations 

—  The  Ponds  Leave  the  Mission 207 

CHAPTER    XIX. 

WHAT  HAD  BEEN  ACCOMPLISHED. 

1838-1862.    Work  Accomplished—  Alphabet  and  Orthography 

—  Three  Thousand  Words  in  1838  —  Massacre  of  1862  — 
Results  of  the  Uprising  —  Three  Hundred  Condemned  to 
Death — Imprisoned    at  Mankato  —  Gideon   Pond   Visits 
the  Prison  —  A  Pentecostal  Awakening  —  Three  Hundred 
Baptized  in  one  Day 215 

CHAPTER    XX. 

FIRSTFRUITS  AND  FILE-LEADERS. 

1863-1885.  Revival  at  Fort  Snelling  — Indians  Removed  to 
Niobrara  — E.  R.  Pond  and  Wife  Join  the  Mission  — Da 
kota  Churches  and  Native  Pastors  —  John  P.  Williamson 
on  Results  —  Indian  File-Leaders  —  Eagle  Help  (Wanmdi- 
Okiye)  —  Nancy  (Wakantanka)  —  The  Eastmans  — Hepi 
(haypee)  and  Catan  (chatari)  —  Last  Letters  and  Death 
of  a  Christian 225 

CHAPTER    XXI. 

OLDTIME  FRIENDS. 

Oldtime  Friends  — Major  Lawrence  Taliaferro  —  Prayer  Meet 
ing  in  the  Cabin  — The  Four  Participants  — H.  H.  Sibley 
and  His  Friendship  —  Last  Letter  to  Gideon  Pond  —  Last 
Letter  to  Samuel  Gustavus  Loomis  and  Wife  — Dr.  Turner, 
the  Skilled  Surgeon  — Dr.  E.  D.  Neill,  the  Historian  of 
Minnesota,  and  others 242 

CHAPTER    XXII. 

A  PASTORATE  OF  TWENTY  YEARS. 

1852-1878.  Dr.  Treat's  Letter  and  Visit  —  Transition  Period— 
New  Work  at  Bloomington  —  Church  Organized  —  Mani 
fold  Labors  —  George  H.  Pond  —  Bright  Promise  and  Early 
Death  — Twenty  Years' Pastorate  — The  Release  .  .  .  .  250 


Xll  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    XXIII. 

PASTORATE  AT  8HAKOPEE  AND  THE  RELEASE. 

1852-1891.  Samuel  W.  Pond  —  His  Second  Marriage  —  Returns 
to  Minnesota— Organizes  a  Church  — Builds  a  House  of 
Worship  —  Labor  and  Results  — War  Times  — Concludes 
Pastoral  Labors  — What  Followed  — The  Last  of  Earth  .  261 

CHAPTER    XXIV. 

SOME  THOUGHTS  IN  CONCLUSION. 

Concluding  Reflections  — Called  to  be  Pioneers  — One  Motive 
and  Master  —  Consecrated  for  Life 269 

APPENDIX. 
An-pe-tu-sa-pa-win 273 


SAMUEL   W.    POND. 


Two  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES 
AMONG  THE  DAKOTAS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ANCESTRY   AND    EARLY   TRAINING. 

THE  Ponds  of  Connecticut  were  of  English  Puri 
tan  ancestry,  the  family  name  first  appearing 
in  the  colonial  records  about  the  year  1630. 

It  appears  from  the  published  family  history  that 
the  sixth  in  lineal  descent  from  Samuel,  the  original 
pioneer,  was  named  Edward.  He  married  a  sister  of 
the  Rev.  Adoniram  Judson,  Sr.,  and  located  in 
Woodbury,  Litchfield  County. 

The  firstfruit  of  this  marriage  was  a  son,  Elnathan 
Judson,  who  married  Sarah  Hollister,  of  Washington, 
Conn.,  and  settled  in  the  adjoining  town  of  New  Pres 
ton.  The  Hollister  family  had  been  identified  with 
that  part  of  Litchfield  County  from  its  earliest  settle 
ment.  This  young  couple  spent  the  first  years  of 
their  married  life  in  the  towns  of  Woodbury  and  New 
Preston,  and  in  this  latter  town  the  two  sons  whose 

7  * 


8  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

life  work  forms  the  subject  of  this  story  were  born  — 
Samuel  William,  on  the  tenth  of  April,  1808,  Gideon 
Hollister,  June  30,  1810.  They  were  fifth  and  sixth 
in  order  of  birth  in  their  father's  family,  which  con 
sisted  of  nine  children,  eight  of  whom  lived  to  old 
age. 

About  the  year  1812,  Mr.  Pond  removed  with  his 
family  to  the  wilds  of  eastern  New  York,  settling 
in  Windham  County,  on  the  western  slope  of  the 
Catskill  Mountains.  They  remained  in  that  primitive 
region  four  or  five  years  and  then  returned  to  Litch- 
field  County,  Connecticut,  permanently  locating  near 
the  village  of  Washington. 

When  twelve  years  old,  Samuel  again  went  to  New 
York  state,  to  live  with  an  uncle,  but  at  the  end  of 
a  year  this  uncle  was  accidentally  killed  and  Samuel 
returned  to  Washington.  He  left  home  again  soon 
afterwards  and  was  apprenticed  to  the  clothier's  trade 
with  a  Captain  Evitts  Moody,  who  conducted  a  farm 
and  in  connection  with  it  a  cloth-dressing  establish 
ment.  The  young  apprentice  had  little  taste  for  the 
labors  of  the  fulling  mill  and  dyehouse,  but  liked  farm 
ing,  which  occupied  a  large  part  of  the  year. 

The  Moody  homestead  covered  a  little  tract  of  level 
ground  near  the  dashing  Shepaug  River,  and  was  but 
a  short  distance  from  the  noted  cliff  called  Steep 
Rock.  There  were  many  points  of  special  interest 


ANCESTRY  AND  EARLY  TRAINING.  9 

in  the  immediate  vicinity  and  many  more  near  enough 
to  be  accessible,  and  to  the  ardent  lover  of  nature 
there  were  many  redeeming  features  about  the  seven 
years  spent  at  the  Moody  homestead. 

Captain  Moody  owned  a  tract  of  land  some  distance 
down  the  river  from  the  home  field,  and  to  this  tract 
the  young  apprentice  often  went  early  in  the  morning 
and  remained  there  all  the  long  day,  and  on  such 
occasions,  during  the  noon  hour,  he  could  indulge  his 
fondness  for  trout-fishing  or  could  read  Burns  or 
Rollin  without  fear  of  interruption. 

His  life  was  in  some  respects  a  rather  free  one,  and 
he  often  preferred  a  grassy  couch  on  the  bank  of  the 
mill  pond  to  his  bed  in  the  loft,  and  a  considerable 
part  of  the  night  was  often  spent  in  catching  eels.  He 
attended  the  excellent  schools  of  Washington  village 
during  the  winter  months,  and  became  early  proficient 
in  most  of  the  branches  taught  in  the  public  schools 
of  that  day.  He  was  from  early  boyhood  an  omnivo 
rous  reader  and  became  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
most  of  the  standard  literature  of  that  day  during 
his  apprenticeship.  Books,  historical,  biographical, 
and  poetical  were  alike  read  with  unflagging  interest. 
Burns  was  his  favorite  poet,  and  a  pocket  edition  of 
this  author  was  his  constant  companion. 

The  early  life  of  Gideon  Pond  was  in  some  respects 
different  from  that  of  his  older  brother.  He  was  ap- 


10  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

prenticed  at  an  early  age  to  a  carpenter,  Jared  Frost 
by  name,  and  remained  with  him  for  some  months, 
perhaps  years. 

The  labors  of  the  carpenter  and  builder  were  at 
that  time  severe,  including  the  work  of  cutting  down, 
hewing,  and  framing  large,  green,  hard-wood  timbers, 
which  were  often,  especially  when  a  barn  was  to  be 
built,  extremely  heavy.  This  work  proved  too  hard 
for  the  young  apprentice,  who  was  at  that  time  small 
in  stature,  and  gave  little  promise  of  developing  into 
the  strong,  vigorous-framed  man  which  he  was  in  his 
prime.  When  about  fifteen  years  of  age  he  was  com 
pelled  by  the  critical  state  of  his  health  to  give  up  his 
trade. 

Gideon  Pond  found  from  that  time  a  congenial  home 
with  a  married  sister,  Mrs.  Jonathan  Hine,  with  whom 
he  lived  until  he  was  of  age,  and  became  in  the  mean 
time  a  very  skillful  and  thorough  farmer. 

The  manner  in  which  these  brothers  grew  up  and 
the  methods  of  their  early  training  especially  prepared 
them  for  the  pioneer  work  to  which  they  were  subse 
quently  called.  They  became  early  inured  to  ex 
posure  and  hardship  and  they  also  learned  by  early 
experience  to  measure  the  extent  of  their  personal 
resources  with  an  accuracy  which  experience  alone 
can  teach.  They  owed  much  to  the  character,  ex 
ample,  and  counsels  of  their  noble  mother,  whose 


ANCESTRY  AND  EARLY  TRAINING.          11 

consistent  walk  and  conversation  in  the  midst  of 
many  hardships  and  discouragements  were  a  con 
stant  inspiration  to  her  children. 

After  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  apprenticeship, 
Samuel  worked  about  three  months  at  his  trade  in 
Harwinton  and  then  gave  up  the  trade,  which  he  had 
never  liked.  He  worked  on  a  farm  in  the  vicinity  of 
Washington  until  he  was  twenty-three,  and  was  then 
attacked  by  a  very  violent  disorder  somewhat  of  the 
nature  of  inflammatory  rheumatism.  The  attack  was 
nearly  fatal,  and  after  many  months  of  intense  suf 
fering  he  rose  from  his  sick  bed,  but  only  to  walk  with 
the  aid  of  crutches,  and  was  assured  by  his  physician 
that  he  would  be  a  cripple  for  life.  Notwithstanding 
this  comforting  prediction  he  gradually  regained  his 
health,  and  as  soon  as  he  was  able  commenced  teach 
ing  school  in  Washington  and  proved  a  popular  and 
successful  teacher. 


CHAPTER    II. 

NEW   LIFE   AND   NEW   PLANS. 

OF  Mr.  Samuel  Pond  it  may  be  said  that,  until 
he  arrived  at  the  age  of  twenty-three,  his  char 
acter  lacked  the  essential  element  of  an  elevated  and 
definite  purpose.  In  the  characters  of  many  of  his 
relatives  he  had  seen  clearly  exemplified  the  power 
and  beauty  of  Christian  faith,  but  knew  nothing  of 
this  faith  by  personal  experience.  His  active  mind, 
like  the  spirit  in  the  parable,  had  wandered  through  the 
dry  places  of  the  world  seeking  rest  and  had  found 
it  not.  An  ardent  lover  of  literature,  a  still  more 
ardent  lover  of  nature,  he  found  neither  sufficient  for 
his  needs.  Independent  in  his  modes  of  thought,  and 
often  slow  to  accept  the  statements  and  deductions  of 
others,  accustomed  also  to  ridicule  what  he  did  not 
believe,  he  had  in  the  opinion  of  others,  if  not  in  his 
own  personal  convictions,  wandered  far  from  the  faith 
of  his  fathers. 

At  this  time  a  religious  awakening  occurred  in  his 
native  town,  so  marked  in  its  character  and  so  per 
manent  in  its  results  that  it  formed  an  epoch  in 
the  history  of  the  place,  so  that  for  more  than  sixty 

12 


GIDEON    H.   POND. 

At  60. 


NEW  LIFE  AND  NEW  PLANS.  13 

years  events  have  often  been  mentioned  as  occurring 
before  or  during  "  the  great  revival."  For  weeks 
and  months,  during  the  busiest  season  of  the  year, 
crowded  sunrise  prayer  meetings  were  held  daily  and 
were  attended  by  a  population  almost  exclusively 
agricultural,  and  each  day  busily  engaged  in  the 
labors  of  the  harvest  and  hay  fields. 

Like  many  others,  Mr.  Pond  felt  the  presence  of  a 
Power  which  he  could  not  explain  away  by  any  in 
tellectual  process,  or  account  for  by  any  method  of 
human  reasoning.  After  passing  through  a  season 
of  darkness,  doubt,  and  despair  such  as  few  are 
called  to  pass  through,  he  finally  was  guided  to  the 
4 'wicket  gate"  and  left  his  burden  at  the  cross. 
His  brother  Gideon  was  also  converted  during  this 
revival. 

More  than  one  hundred  converts  at  one  time  united 
with  the  Congregational  Church  at  Washington,  these 
two  brothers  among  the  number,  and  this  was  with 
them  the  commencement  of  a  new  life.  From  this 
point  in  their  lives  the  inspiring  motive  with  both 
these  brothers  seems  to  have  been  a  spirit  of  loyalty 
to  their  new  Master,  accompanied  by  a  burning  love 
for  their  fellow  men.  The  elder  brother  was  still  dis 
abled  from  manual  labor  by  the  effects  of  his  long 
illness,  and,  anxious  to  find  a  more  needy  field  for 
Christian  labor  than  New  England  afforded,  he  turned 
his  thoughts  to  the  West. 


14  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

It  was  finally  agreed  between  the  two  brothers  that 
Samuel  should  go  West,  with  the  somewhat  indefinite 
purpose  of  locating  in  Missouri,  or  some  other  distant 
state,  and  there  be  joined  by  his  brother  Gideon, 
should  a  promising  field  be  found.  The  plans  of  the 
brothers  were  not  regarded  with  favor  by  their  friends 
and  relatives,  and  they  met  decided  opposition  in 
carrying  them  out ;  but  they  were  not  to  be  turned 
aside  from  their  purpose.  Provided  with  a  small 
amount  of  money  earned  in  teaching  school,  Samuel 
set  out  in  the  month  of  March,  1833,  for  the  distant 
west.  The  journey  from  New  Haven  to  New  York  by 
boat,  and  from  the  latter  point  to  some  small  town  on 
the  coast  of  New  Jersey,  and  thence  by  stage  through 
the  hills  of  Pennsylvania  to  Pittsburg,  is  very  mi 
nutely  described  in  an  interesting  letter  written  home 
from  this  latter  city,  where  the  first  Sabbath  away 
from  home  was  spent. 

At  Pittsburg  Mr.  Pond  took  deck  passage  down 
the  Ohio,  intending  to  stop  at  St.  Louis.  By  taking 
passage  on  deck  the  expenses  of  the  trip  were 
brought  within  the  means  of  the  young  voyager,  and 
by  clubbing  with  other  passengers  of  the  same  class 
the  table  expense  was  also  reduced  to  a  minimum. 
Deck  passengers  were  required  to  assist  in  taking  in 
wood  at  the  landings,  which  Mr.  Pond  says  he  found 
"  good  exercise." 


NEW  LIFE  AND  NEW  PLANS.  15 

This  journey  down  the  Ohio  came  near  proving  his 
last  journey.  He  was  seized  with  the  cholera,  then 
so  prevalent  and  fatal  on  the  western  rivers.  The 
attack  was  a  severe  one.  He  was  among  total 
strangers,  and  was  also  ignorant  of  the  nature  of 
the  disease. 

Having  no  relish  in  his  illness  for  the  coarse  fare 
provided  by  the  steerage  passengers,  he  at  one  point 
went  on  shore  in  search  of  something  to  eat,  and 
having  procured  an  egg  he  returned  to  the  landing 
to  find  that  the  boat  with  his  baggage  and  money 
had  gone.  He  went  on  board  a  steamer  which  lay 
at  the  landing  and  by  rare  good  fortune  overtook  the 
one  on  which  he  had  taken  passage  at  a  landing 
lower  down  the  river,  hastened  on  board,  and  sought 
his  berth. 

Guided  by  the  unseen  hand  of  Providence  he  finally 
arrived  at  Galena,  111.,  an  embryo  town,  then  re 
cently  started  for  the  purpose  of  developing  the  lead 
mines  in  that  region.  Here  he  remained  until  the 
following  spring,  living  in  the  family  of  a  Mr.  Jones, 
a  printer. 

During  the  years  1833  and  1834  the  cholera  raged 
fiercely  in  all  the  towns  along  the  western  rivers,  and 
Galena  did  not  escape.  Mr.  Jones,  the  printer  in 
whose  family  Samuel  lived,  died  during  the  summer  of 
the  epidemic.  Mr.  Pond  busied  himself  in  many  ways. 


16  TWO  VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONARIES. 

He  was  active  in  Sunday-school  work,  and  soon  made 
the  acquaintance  of  the  Rev.  Aratus  Kent,  a  pioneer 
clergyman  of  Galena,  who  was  his  lifelong  friend. 
He  also  spent  much  time  among  the  sick  and  dying. 
In  the  part  of  the  town  where  he  lived  cholera  victims 
were  very  numerous,  and  his  gratuitous  services  were 
in  demand  on  every  side. 

Excursions  were  made  to  Gratiot's  Grove,  Mineral 
Point,  and  other  neighboring  towns  in  search  of  a 
school  to  teach,  but  no  opening  was  found. 

About  the  first  of  June,  1833,  he  made  a  trip  in 
company  with  Mr.  Kent  to  Chicago,  then  a  straggling 
village  of  a  few  hundred  inhabitants.  The  journey 
was  made  across  the  prairie,  following  for  some  dis 
tance  the  course  of  the  Illinois  River.  On  the  return 
trip  Winnebago  Indians  were  seen,  but  they  did  not 
suggest  to  Mr.  Pond  the  idea  of  engaging  in  the 
Indian  work.  Mr.  Kent  and  Mr.  Pond  passed  most 
of  the  way  on  their  return  through  an  uninhabited 
country,  and  for  seventy  miles  saw  no  house  save  a 
deserted  Indian  village. 

During  this  year  Mr.  Pond  had  a  second  attack  of 
cholera  and  attributed  his  recovery  to  the  prompt  use 
of  calomel. 

During  his  stay  in  Galena  an  apparently  trifling 
occurrence  gave  definite  direction  to  his  life  plans. 
He  often  passed  a  small  store  where  liquor  was  sold, 


NEW  LIFE  AND  NEW  PLANS.  17 

and  one  day  stepped  in  to  persuade  the  proprietor,  if 
possible,  to  seek  a  more  honorable  calling.  That  first 
interview  led  to  an  acquaintance,  and  from  this  man 
something  was  learned  about  the  Dakotas,  whose  ter 
ritory  he  had  traversed  on  his  way  from  the  Red  River 
country,  from  which  section  he  had  come.  This 
man's  description  of  the  Dakota  nation  was  fairly 
accurate  but  applied  only  to  the  buffalo  hunters  of  the 
plains  with  whom  only  he  was  acquainted. 

These  wild  and  roving  Indians  seemed  to  be  proper 
subjects  for  Christian  effort,  and  promised  to  fur 
nish  the  opportunity  for  self-denying  labor  that  the 
brothers  were  longing  for.  After  mature  considera 
tion,  Samuel  decided  to  write  to  his  brother  Gideon, 
inviting  the  latter  to  join  him  early  the  following 
spring  and  undertake  with  him  an  independent  mis 
sion  to  the  Sioux  or  Dakotas.  He  in  the  meantime 
mentioned  the  project  to  his  friend  Mr.  Kent,  who 
looked  upon  the  plan  with  no  favor,  and  said  he  would 
never  give  his  consent  to  so  wild  a  scheme. 

Extracts  from  two  of  Mr.  Pond's  letters,  written 
home  at  about  this  period,  the  autumn  of  1833,  will 
give  a  somewhat  accurate  idea  of  his  plans  and  the 
reasoning  on  which  they  were  based.  The  first  of 
these  letters  was  dated  October  8,  and  was  written  to 
his  brother  Gideon,  previous  to  the  time  when  he 
decided  to  go  to  the  land  of  the  Dakotas  :  — 


18  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

I  have  delayed  writing  to  you  for  a  long  time  that  I  might  know 
what  to  write,  but  I  have  not  forgotten  you,  and  the  expectation 
of  seeing  you  here  next  spring  has  frequently  been  a  cordial  to 
my  spirits. 

Since  I  left  you  at  Plymouth,  I  have  met  with  little  calculated 
to  attach  me  to  this  world,  but  much  to  remind  me  that  we  have 
no  "  continuing  city  or  abiding  place." 

My  health  has  not  been  very  good  much  of  the  time  since  I  left 

W ,  and,  so  far  as  I  can  judge,  I  have  done  little  or  no  good 

during  the  past  summer. 

I  suppose  you  still  contemplate  coming  to  this  country  next 
spring,  and  would  like  to  know  particularly  what  opportunity 
there  is  of  doing  good.  With  respect  to  the  moral  character  of 
the  people,  it  is  probably  much  worse  than  you  imagine.  I  mean 
the  people  here,  at  these  lead  mines ;  for  although  people  in  other 
parts  of  this  western  country  are  very  bad,  yet  I  suppose  the 
people  here  are  much  the  worst.  This  is  one  of  the  strongholds 
of  the  prince  of  darkness.  It  has  appeared  to  me  during  the  past 
summer  like  the  gate  of  hell,  for  it  has  been  very  unhealthy,  and 
of  the  multitudes  who  have  died  here  I  have  not  known  one  who 
has  appeared  to  die  in  the  Lord.  The  worst  kinds  of  vices  pre 
vail  to  a  high  degree.  Sabbath-breaking  is  common  among  the 
most  respectable  people.  We  have  preaching  here,  but  only  a  few 
usually  attend.  I  believe  the  church  consists  of  about  seventeen 
members,  yet  I  fear  they  exert  but  little  influence  on  the  world 
around  them.  Drunkenness  prevails  to  a  great  extent,  even  among 
the  most  influential  men.  Gambling  houses  are  openly  kept  in 
different  parts  of  the  village.  Swearing  is  common,  even  among 
children.  Indeed,  wickedness  prevails  in  every  form. 

The  first  white  inhabitants  of  this  part  of  the  country  came 
here  about  seven  years  ago.  The  state  of  society  is  very  unsettled, 
but  is  constantly  improving.  There  are  many  Catholics  here,  but 
they  have  no  priest  now.  He  died  last  summer,  and  I  hope  his 
place  will  never  be  filled.  That  religion  is  worse  than  no  religion. 


NEW  LIFE  AND  NEW  PLANS.  19 

Thus  you  will  see  there  is  great  room  for  doing  good  here.  I 
think  that  a  person  who  comes  to  this  country  to  do  good  ought 
to  be  willing  to  wait  patiently  for  years,  although  he  may  see  no 
fruit  of  his  labors. 

It  appears  to  me  that  a  person  who  would  be  useful  in  such  a 
place  as  this  one  should  become  a  permanent  resident. 

The  following  letter,  dated  at  Galena,  December  3, 
1833,  unfolds  the  Dakota  Mission  project :  — 

Dear  Brother,  — I  have  not  yet  received  an  answer  to  the  letter 
I  wrote  you  dated  October  8,  and  the  reason  why  I  do  not  wait  for 
an  answer,  which  I  expect  soon,  is  that  my  views  and  feelings  are 
different  from  what  they  were  when  I  wrote  before.  This  is  also 
my  excuse  for  writing  so  soon  after  writing  to  my  other  friends. 

Soon  after  my  arrival  here,  on  becoming  acquainted  with  the 
condition  of  the  surrounding  Indians,  niy  interest  was  excited  on 
behalf  of  the  Sioux,  a  large  nation  west  of  the  Mississippi,  and  on 
the  Missouri  and  its  branches. 

I  resolved  to  remain  here  until  your  arrival,  and  then  go  up  to 
the  Fort  of  St.  Peters,  which  is  situated  on  the  St.  Peters  River, 
near  the  Mississippi  and  about  five  hundred  miles  north  of  this 
place.  There  is  a  body  of  Sioux  Indians  located  near  there.  From 
them  we  could  learn  the  language  which  is  spoken  by  a  vast 
number  of  Indians  scattered  over  a  large  extent  of  country,  from 
the  Mississippi  to  the  Pacific.  These  Indians  are  visited  only  by 
traders  in  fur  nearly  as  ignorant  as  themselves,  and  are  the  most 
savage  and  warlike  of  all  the  northwestern  Indians.  I  have  ob 
tained  much  information  respecting  these  Indians  since  I  came, 
and  if  I  had  an  opportunity  of  conversing  with  you,  I  think  I 
could  easily  convince  you  of  the  importance  of  doing  something 
speedily  for  the  Sioux  (soos).  I  saw  last  spring  a  party  of  tne 
miserable  remnant  of  the  Pottawatomies,  who  were  neglected  until 
it  is  now  too  late  to  help  them. 

It  is  found  by  experience  that  if  once  the  Indians  are  in  a  posi- 


20  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

tion  to  obtain  spirits,  there  is  but  little  prospect  of  doing  them 
good.  The  main  body  of  the  Sioux  are  not  now  in  that  condition, 
but  erelong  they  will  be ;  then  help  will  be  too  late. 

I  know  that  difficulties  attend  the  undertaking,  but  I  believe 
they  are  not  insurmountable.  If  God  is  with  us,  it  will  be  enough. 
Pray  that  we  may  not  undertake  to  go  in  our  own  strength. 

I  believe  that  if  I  could  see  you,  I  could  soon  answer  all  the 
objections  that  you  or  others  could  urge  against  the  proposed 
plan.  So  much  was  my  heart  set  upon  going,  that  last  July  I 
began  to  make  preparations  for  it.  I  purchased  two  rifles,  one  for 
you  and  one  for  myself,  as  they  seemed  to  be  sent  to  me  by  Prov 
idence  and  would  be  indispensable  articles  if  we  should  go. 

It  seemed  necessary  that  I  should  come  here  and  stay  one  year 
to  make  preparation.  My  mind  was  diverted  from  the  undertak 
ing  by  circumstances  which  I  shall  not  now  relate,  but  since  I 
relinquished  the  idea  of  going  my  mind  has  been  continually 
unsettled,  and  I  have  been  resolving  on  one  course  of  conduct  and 
abandoning  it  for  another,  to  be  abandoned  in  turn,  while  I  have 
been  like  a  wave  of  the  sea. 

If  you  should  finally  conclude  to  come  here  with  the  design  of 
accompanying  me  up  the  river  next  spring,  I  think  that  it  would 
be  best  for  you  to  start  about  the  time  of  the  year  that  I  did.  If 
you  should  start  sooner,  it  would  be  more  expensive  traveling,  and 
if  later,  it  would  probably  be  more  unhealthy  and  perhaps  too  late 
to  go  in  the  boat  to  St.  Peters,  as  boats  seldom  go  there  and  com 
monly  go  early  in  the  season.  I  do  not  know  any  better  route  than 
the  one  by  which  I  came. 

Very  minute  directions  follow  as  to  rates  for  cabin 
and  deck  passage  and  measures  which  should  be  taken 
for  preserving  the  health  on  the  trip  down  the  Ohio, 
and  such  other  suggestions  as  Samuel  thought  might 
be  of  service  to  his  inexperienced  brother. 


NEW  LIFE  AND  NEW  PLANS.  21 

If  you  should,  after  mature  consideration,  and  after  having 
sought  the  direction  of  God  (may  his  Holy  Spirit  direct  us  both) , 
think  it  your  duty  to  come  out  and  go  with  me  to  the  St.  Peters, 
you  will  probably  wish  to  know  what  preparation  it  is  necessary 
to  make.  The  summers  are  shorter  there  than  here,  and  the  win 
ters  are  long  and  cold.  It  would  be  useless  for  you  to  burden 
yourself  with  many  summer  clothes  or  to  provide  such  as  would 
be  expensive.  Woolen  stockings,  flannel  shirts  and  drawers,  etc., 
with  good,  substantial  woolen  clothes,  will  be  the  most  important 
articles.  Such  articles  as  I  first  mentioned  will  be  harder  to  obtain 
than  outside  clothing,  as  that  can  be  made  of  blankets  and  skins, 
and  generally  is  in  that  country. 

I  shall  endeavor  to  make  provision  of  such  articles  as  can  be 
obtained  here,  but  with  respect  to  money,  we  shall  probably  have 
little  use  for  it  but  we  shall  need  some.  We  may  have  to  hire  an 
interpreter. 

Perhaps  you  look  upon  my  scheme  as  visionary,  but  I  cannot 
think  it  so.  You  may  say  that  although  some  one  ought  to  go,  we 
are  not  the  ones;  but  why  not  we?  Cannot  we  learn  the  Indian 
language  as  well  as  others?  Who  are  under  greater  obligations 
and  have  greater  reason  to  deny  themselves  and  take  up  the  cross 
and  follow  Christ  than  you  and  I?  You  may  object  that  you  are 
not  qualified  for  a  missionary,  but  what  is  wanting?  It  is  not 
natural  talents.  It  is  true  that  God  has  withheld  from  us  those 
brilliant  talents  which  he  has  bestowed  on  some,  but  what  then? 
We  can  tell  our  fellow  sinners  that  "  God  so  loved  the  world  that 
he  gave  his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  on  him 
should  not  perish,  but  have  eternal  life." 

If  in  consequence  of  what  I  have  written  to  you  before,  your 
plans  of  life  are  different  from  what  I  here  propose,  and  it  is  diffi 
cult  for  you  to  alter  them  now,  I  assure  you  that  there  is  a  wide 
field  for  usefulness  in  this  place.  There  is  much  to  be  done  here. 
"  The  harvest  is  great  and  the  labourers  are  few." 

I  want  you  to  seek  direction  from  God.    Let  us  set  apart  a 


22  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

particular  time  each  day  in  which  to  seek  heavenly  wisdom,  that 
we  may  be  enabled  to  choose  that  course  of  conduct  by  which  God 
will  be  most  glorified  and  the  most  good  done  to  our  fellow  men. 
Our  usefulness  and  happiness  depend  upon  our  living  near  to  God, 
for  you  well  know  that  God  alone  can  make  us  useful  and  happy. 
If  we  wish  to  grow  in  grace,  we  must  read  the  Bible  much  and 
pray  much;  and  not  only  read  and  pray,  but  act. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  read,  in  connection  with 
this  letter,  the  younger  brother's  reply  ;  but  we  only 
know  that  the  proposed  plan  was  with  many  misgiv 
ings  accepted,  and  in  the  midst  of  much  opposition 
from  friends  and  relatives  Gideon  set  about  his  prep 
arations  for  going  among  the  Indians. 

In  the  meantime  Samuel  was  diligently  completing 
such  preparations  as  he  was  able  to  make  with  the 
limited  means  at  his  disposal.  He  had  reached  Galena 
with  one  hundred  dollars  in  money,  and  had  earned 
some  during  his  stay  there  ;  but  owing  to  an  attack  of 
cholera  followed  by  fever  and  ague  during  the  summer, 
this  money  was  used  up.  A  pair  of  blankets  was  ob 
tained  by  the  sacrifice  of  his  watch. 

He  had,  however,  thirty  dollars  given  by  the  Sab 
bath-school  of  his  native  place  to  aid  him  in  his  work, 
but  since  it  was  sent  before  the  donors  knew  he  was 
going  among  the  Indians,  and  they  might  not  approve 
of  the  undertaking,  he  preferred  to  hand  the  money  to 
Mr.  Kent,  requesting  him  to  use  it  in  purchasing  a 
library  for  some  needy  Sabbath-school ;  and  a  part  of 


NEW  LIFE  AND   NEW  PLANS.  23 

it  was  afterwards  used  in  purchasing  a  library  for  the 
school  organized  at  Fort  Snelling  in  1835,  the  first 
Sunday-school  within  the  present  limits  of  Minnesota. 

Early  in  April,  Gideon  Pond  arrived  at  Galena, 
bringing  with  him  about  three  hundred  dollars  in 
money,  his  entire  savings,  which,  with  a  slender  outfit 
of  clothing,  represented  the  material  resources  of 
these  two  volunteers.  They  expected  to  go  among 
roving  tribes  of  Indians,  to  have  no  certain  dwelling 
place,  and  to  subsist  as  the  Indians  themselves  sub 
sisted.  Their  plan  was  a  simple  and,  as  they  proved, 
a  feasible  one,  but  one  which  would  require  large 
stores  of  faith  and  fortitude  each  step  of  the  way. 

The  older  of  the  brothers  was  twenty-six  at  the 
time  they  left  Galena,  and  in  form  tall  and  very  slen 
der,  as  he  always  continued  to  be.  The  younger  and 
more  robust  brother  was  not  quite  twenty-four,  more 
than  six  feet  tall,  strong  and  active,  a  fine  specimen 
of  well-developed  manhood.  They  were  men  ex 
tremely  well  fitted  mentally  and  physically  for  endur 
ing  the  toils  and  privations  attending  the  course  they 
now  entered  upon. 

On  the  first  of  May,  1834,  they  embarked  on  the 
steamer  Warrior,  for  St.  Peters,  bidding  a  long  and, 
as  they  then  supposed,  a  final  farewell  to  civilization. 
Just  before  going  on  board,  they  called  to  take  leave 
of  Mr.  Kent.  He  remarked:  "I  thought  you  had 


24  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

given  up  that  foolish  project ;  you  are  just  throwing 
yourselves  away." 

As  the  steamer  glided  out  of  Fever  River  and  its 
bow  was  headed  upstream,  the  younger  brother  re 
marked  :  ' '  This  is  a  serious  undertaking  ;  "  and  such 
in  some  respects  it  was.  There  was  in  it  no  element 
of  attractiveness  aside  from  the  divinely-promised 
reward.  It  was  to  a  people  ignorant,  savage,  and 
degraded,  and,  as  they  had  been  led  to  believe,  to  a 
dreary  region  where  the  people  clothed  themselves  in 
furs  and  were  little  better  off  than  exiles  to  Siberia. 
Furthermore,  these  adventurers  knew  that,  save  a  few 
personal  friends,  none  knew  anything  of  this  mission 
to  the  Dakotas  or  felt  the  slightest  interest  in  its  suc 
cess  or  failure. 


CHAPTER  III. 

I 

AMONG   THE    DAKOTAS. 

THE  scenery  of  the  upper  Mississippi  is  still  pleas 
ing  to  those  eyes  which  first  behold  it  clothed  in 
its  springtime  robe  of  beauty.  In  1834  this  scenery 
shone  forth  in  all  the  primeval  glory  of  "  nature 
unmarred  by  hand  of  man." 

As  the  steamer  Warrior  threaded  its  way  up  the 
river  toward  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Peters,  the  rich 
May  verdure  through  which  they  passed  must  have 
appeared  singularly  beautiful  to  the  two  brothers  who 
then  beheld  it  for  the  first  time ;  but  their  chief  in 
terest  seems  to  have  centered  in  the  half -naked  Dako- 
tas  whom  they  first  met  at  Prairie  du  Chien. 

At  this  landing  Mr.  S.  W.  Pond  learned  of  a  white 
man  who  knew  something  of  the  language  how  to  ask 
the  name  of  a  thing  in  Dakota.  Approaching  an 
Indian  who  was  standing  near  a  pile  of  iron,  he 
asked  its  name  ;  the  Indian  promptly  replied,  "  Maza." 
Dipping  a  little  water  in  his  hand  from  the  river,  he 
said,  "  Mini,"  then  taking  up  a  little  sand  he  added, 
"  Weeyaka." 

There   on   the   bank   of   the   river   the   first  words 

25 


26  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

were  obtained  for  the  future  lexicon  of  the  Dakota 
language. 

Mr.  Pond  says,  "  No  other  acquisition  of  the  kind 
ever  afforded  me  so  much  pleasure  as  it  did  to  be 
able  to  sa/  in  Dakota,  '  What  call  you  this  ? ' ' 

The  boat  reached  Fort  Snelling  on  the  sixth  of 
May,  and  while  the  brothers  were  still  on  board  they 
received  a  visit  and  a  warm  welcome  from  the  Rev. 
W.  T.  Boutwell,  a  missionary  of  the  American 
Board  to  the  Ojibways,  then  located  at  Leech  Lake. 
Mr.  Boutwell  had  come  to  Fort  Snelling  to  obtain 
supplies  for  his  station,  and  was  rejoiced  to  meet 
"these  dear  brothers  who,  from  love  to  Christ  and 
the  poor  red  man,  had  conie  alone  to  this  long- 
neglected  field." 

A  little  later  the  brothers  left  the  boat  and  were  at 
once  surrounded  by  Indians,  who  crowded  around  the 
landing  on  the  arrival  of  this  the  first  boat  of  the 
season. 

Fort  Snelling  was  located  on  the  high  point  of  land 
lying  between  the  Mississippi  and  Minnesota,  or,  as  it 
was  then  called,  St.  Peters  River.  It  was  at  that 
time  the  central,  and  in  fact  the  only,  important  place 
lying  within  the  present  state  of  Minnesota.  There 
was  then  and  for  years  afterward  no  white  settlement 
northwest  of  Prairie  du  Chien,  and  it  was  the  decided 
policy  of  the  government  to  exclude  all  except  agents 


AMONG    THE  DAKOTAS.  27 

and  employees  of  the  fur  companies  from  the  ter 
ritory  of  the  Indians.  The  military  post  at  Fort 
Snelling,  erected  in  1819,  fifteen  years  prior  to  this 
date,  was  for  many  years  the  extreme  outpost  of 
frontier  civilization. 

The  Dakota  Indians  had  not  disposed  of  any  por 
tion  of  their  vast  territory  by  treaty,  except  the 
narrow  tract  forming  the  military  reserve  on  which 
the  above-named  fort  was  built.  They  supported 
themselves  as  their  fathers  had  done,  almost  entirely 
by  hunting,  trapping,  and  fishing.  The  Indians  living 
in  the  vicinity  of  Lake  Calhoun  cultivated  small  fields 
of  quickly  maturing  corn,  which  had  been  introduced 
by  their  chief  a  short  time  before.  The  occasion  of 
this  wise  act  of  the  chief  is  worth  noting. 

He  said  that  at  one  time,  being  out  in  the  Red 
River  country  hunting  with  a  part  of  his  band,  they 
were  overtaken  by  a  drifting  storm  and  remained 
for  several  days  under  the  snow  with  nothing  to  eat. 
While  lying  in  these  drifts  he  formed  a  resolve  to 
rely  in  part  upon  agriculture  for  subsistence  if  he 
escaped  alive,  and  he  remembered  his  resolution  after 
the  immediate  peril  was  past. 

The  Indians  disposed  of  their  furs  mainly  to  the 
American  Fur  Company,  although  in  later  years  some 
independent  traders  engaged  in  the  lucrative  trade. 
The  Indians  received  from  the  traders,  in  exchange 


28  TWO  VOLUNTEER   MISSIONABIES. 

for  their  furs,  articles  which  had  by  use  become 
necessities  to  them.  Among  these  were  guns  and 
ammunition,  steel  traps,  spears,  and  edged  tools,  and 
many  other  similar  articles.  They  likewise  dressed 
themselves  in  large  part  in  textile  fabrics  obtained 
from  the  traders.  The  goods  furnished  them  were 
for  the  most  part  of  a  useful  nature,  well  adapted 
to  their  wants,  while  glass  beads  and  tin  earrings, 
although  often  purchased,  were  looked  upon  as  lux 
uries  which  might  be  dispensed  with  if  necessary. 

The  distributing  point  for  this  section  was  Mendota, 
the  oldest  town  in  Minnesota,  located  directly  across 
the  Minnesota  or  St.  Peters  River  from  Fort  Snelling. 

A  Mr.  Bailey  was  in  charge  of  that  post  in  the 
spring  of  1834.  Among  the  subordinates  in  charge 
of  local  trading  houses  were  the  Faribaults,  Hazen 
Mooers,  Louis  Provencal,  or  Le  Blanc,  as  he  was  usu 
ally  called,  Mr.  Renville,  at  Lac  Qui  Parle,  and  some 
others,  the  trading  posts  extending  from  Lake  Pepin 
to  the  Sheyenne  River.  The  Dakotas  were  distributed 
along  the  Mississippi  and  St.  Peters  or  Minnesota 
rivers,  from  Prairie  du  Chien  to  Lake  Traverse,  and 
their  territory  was  bounded  on  the  north  by  the 
Ojibway  country.  Western  branches  of  the  Dakota 
nation,  outside  of  the  territory  described  above,  were 
of  course  at  that  time  beyond  the  reach  of  missionary 
enterprise. 


AMONG   THE  DAKOTAS.  29 

With  some  of  the  neighboring  tribes,  and  especially 
the  Ojibway  nation,  the  Dakotas  waged  eternal  war 
fare,  and  war  parties  each  year  brought  in  scalps  in 
varying  yet  sufficient  numbers  to  keep  them  in  fair 
practice  in  the  line  of  the  scalp  dance. 

The  Indian  agent  at  Fort  Snelling  was  Major  Talia- 
ferro,  a  man  peculiarly  fitted  by  nature  and  training 
to  successfully  discharge  the  responsible  duties  per 
taining  to  the  office  of  agent  for  so  numerous  and 
warlike  a  nation  as  that  of  the  Dakotas.  He  was  for 
many  years  their  agent,  and  his  rare  judgment  and 
firm  decision  of  character  preserved  order  to  a  re 
markable  degree  among  the  Indians  under  his  author 
ity,  so  that  he  was  accustomed  to  say  that  during  the 
period  of  his  official  management  no  white  man  had 
been  killed  by  an  Indian  in  his  territory. 

No  attempt  had  ever  been  made  either  by  private 
enterprise  or  government  authority  to  civilize  or  Chris 
tianize  the  Dakotas,  if  we  except  the  fruitless  labors 
of  Father  Hennepin  and  his  successors  to  inflict  the 
saving  ordinance  on  unwilling  savages.  The  Dakota 
Indians  were  at  that  time  substantially  what  they  had 
been  for  generations,  depending  upon  their  own  re 
sources  for  subsistence,  upon  their  own  medicine  men 
for  medical  advice  and  aid,  and  upon  the  traditions 
of  their  fathers  for  their  knowledge  of  the  mysterious 
and  unseen.  Each  of  these  they  found  in  its  way 


30  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

sufficient  for  their  needs.  Experience  had  taught 
them  that  the  natural  resources  of  their  country 
would  supply  them  with  the  necessaries  of  life  ;  that 
while  medical  skill  sometimes  failed  to  restore  the 
sick  to  health,  they  could  then  die  as  their  fathers  had 
done  before  them  ;  and  as  for  spiritual  instruction, 
they  were  not  conscious  of  any  special  lack  in  that 
line,  with  their  medicine  men  to  look  after  their  idol 
atrous  feasts  and  observances. 

The  Pond  brothers  expected  to  find  the  Dakota 
Indians  human  beings  with  like  passions  as  them 
selves,  and  they  so  found  them.  They  were  men  and 
women  like  other  men  and  women,  except  as  heredi 
tary  customs,  modes  of  life,  and  hereditary  ignorance 
and  superstition  had  made  them  to  differ.  "The 
trouble  with  them  was  they  had  too  much  human  na 
ture,"  once  said  Samuel  Pond. 

Mr.  Grooms  was  acting  agent  in  the  absence  of 
Major  Taliaferro,  then  at  the  East,  and  he  permitted 
the  Messrs.  Pond  to  occupy  a  vacant  room  in  one  of  the 
agency  houses,  charging  them  rent  for  it  and  giving 
them  no  encouragement  as  regarded  their  enterprise. 
They  were  soon  afterwards  summoned  to  appear 
before  Major  Bliss,  commandant  of  the  fort,  and 
account  for  their  presence  in  the  Indian  country  with 
out  leave.  Having  no  authority  to  show,  Samuel  Pond 
handed  the  major  a  letter  given  him  by  Mr.  Kent  just 


AMONG    THE  DAKOTAS.  31 

as  he  was  leaving  Galena,  which  Mr.  Kent  remarked 
he  might  find  useful.  This  letter  Major  Bliss  pro 
nounced  insufficient,  since,  while  Mr.  Kent  was  a  reli 
able  man,  his  acquaintance  with  the  brothers  was  not 
long  enough  for  him  to  know  much  about  them.  Mr. 
Pond  then  handed  him  a  private  letter  from  General 
Brinsmade,  of  his  native  place,  a  man  then  extensively 
known  in  New  England.  This  letter  was  pronounced 
perfectly  satisfactory  so  far  as  the  character  of  the 
young  men  was  concerned. 

The  major  then  inquired  what  their  plans  were,  and 
was  informed  that  they  had  no  plans  except  to  do 
what  seemed  most  for  the  benefit  of  the  Indians. 
The  major  then  mentioned  the  fact  that  the  Kaposia 
band  had  oxen  and  a  plow,  but  no  one  to  plow  for 
them.  Mr.  Pond  immediately  volunteered  to  go  down 
and  aid  them,  and  being  dismissed  returned  to  report 
his  success  to  Gideon,  who  had  not  ventured  into  the 
major's  presence. 

Much  depended  upon  this  interview  and  the  way  it 
should  terminate,  since  the  brothers  had  really  no 
right  to  be  in  the  Indian  country,  and  were  intruders. 

Major  Bliss  and  his  wife  were  always,  from  that 
first  interview,  warm  friends  of  the  brothers,  and  one 
of  them  was  shortly  afterwards  asked  to  live  in  the 
major's  family  as  tutor.  This  proposition  was  de 
clined  for  more  important  work. 


32  TWO   VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

In  a  letter  dated  May  25,  Mr.  Pond  writes  of  this 
first  actual  contact  with  the  natives:  "I  stayed  last 
week  with  a  band  about  nine  miles  south  of  this  place, 
where  I  went  to  help  them  break  up  planting  ground  ; 
and  as  I  had  no  other  shelter,  I  slept  in  the  house  of 
the  chief  and  ate  with  him.  He  had  two  wives  and 
a  house  full  of  children.  He  appeared  to  be  much 
pleased  with  the  plowing.  They  have  never  had  any 
done  before." 

The  chief  referred  to  was  the  famous  Big  Thunder 
(Wakinyan-Tanka) ,  the  father  of  the  so-called  Little 
Crow,  whose  connection  with  the  massacre  of  1862  is 
well  known.  Big  Thunder  and  his  chief  soldier,  Big 
Iron,  held  the  plow  alternately  while  Mr.  Pond  drove 
the  oxen,  and  these  two  men  were  doubtless  the  first 
Dakotas  who  ever  plowed  a  furrow.  Mr.  Pond's 
knowledge  of  the  Dakota  must  at  that  time  have  been 
limited,  and  his  entertainers  neither  then  nor  ever 
afterwards  spoke  a  word  of  English ;  consequently, 
social  intercourse  that  week  must  have  been  quite 
restricted. 

Dogs  or  Indians  stole  the  provisions  which  were 
taken  from  the  fort,  and  Indian  fare  was  both  scarce 
and  unpalatable  ;  so  that  first  experience  of  Indian 
modes  of  living  must  have  been  rather  trying.  But 
Mr.  Pond  in  his  letter  says  he  "got  along  very 
well."  As  King  Charles  of  Sweden  once  said,  "The 


AMONG   THE  DAKOTA8.  33 

/ood,    though   not   good,    might  be    eaten;"    and   it 
was. 

Some  extracts  from  a  letter  written  at  this  time  by 
Gideon  to  friends  in  Connecticut  will  further  explain 
the  situation  of  the  brothers  :  — 

I  have  arrived  at  one  of  the  most  beautiful  places  I  ever  saw, 
just  above  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Peters,  and  between  that  and  the 
Mississippi  River.  The  fort  is  situated  on  a  bluff  by  the  river,  on 
the  edge  of  an  extensive  prairie.  .  .  . 

The  rifles  which  Samuel  bought  were  extremely  cheap,  and  we 
brought  them  with  us.  But,  Edward,  we  shall  not  hunt  furs  for  a 
living,  and  yet  they  may  be  of  use  to  us.  You  said  you  could  not 
bear  the  thought  of  our  wandering  about  homeless  and  clothed  in 
skins  or  rags ;  and  you  need  not.  "We  now  occupy  a  room  in  a 
house  built  by  the  United  States  for  the  subagent  of  the  Sioux 
Indians,  or,  in  their  own  language,  the  Oo-we-chas-ta  Da-co-ta. 
We  live  alone  and  cook  our  own  food,  because  in  this  way  we 
get  along  cheaper.  To  see  a  white  man  dressed  in  skins  would  be 
no  more  ridiculous  in  Washington,  Conn.,  than  here. 

One  great  hindrance  to  our  soon  becoming  acquainted  with  the 
Sioux  language  is  that  we  feel  that  we  ought  to  labor  for  our  sup 
port  when  in  health,  so  that  we  may  save  our  money  for  time  of 
necessity.  The  interpreter  costs  us  nothing.  He  is  employed  by 
the  government  to  assist  the  agent,  and  indeed  everything  is 
favorable  and  far  more  inviting  than  we  anticipated.  Yes,  my 
brother,  God  has  prepared  the  way,  and  here  is  a  large  field,  ripe 
already  to  the  harvest;  and  I  ask  you  and  all  my  Christian  friends 
in  Washington  — yes,  that  dear  church  to  which  I  belong  — to 
pray  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  that  he  will  send  forth  laborers  who 
will  not  faint  into  his  harvest. 

Soon  after  Samuel  finished  his  work  at  Big  Thunder's 


34  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

village,  Major  Taliaferro  returned.  He  seemed  pleased 
with  what  the  brothers  had  done  and  were  doing, 
and  nothing  more  was  said  about  rent  for  the  room 
they  occupied.  This  room  they  continued  to  use 
until  they  had  a  home  of  their  own  at  Lake  Calhoun, 
a  great  favor  to  them,  since  prior  to  that  time  neither 
food  nor  clothing  was  safe  at  the  lake.  In  the  mean 
time,  Gideon  plowed  for  the  Lake  Calhoun  band, 
spending  about  a  week  with  them. 

Late  in  May  Dr.  Williamson  arrived  at  Fort  Snell- 
ing,  under  appointment  from  the  A.  B.  C.  F.  M., 
exploring  the  country  for  the  purpose  of  selecting 
a  location  for  a  future  mission  station.  He  and 
Samuel  Pond  visited  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony,  making 
the  trip  on  foot.  They  saw  it  in  all  its  primeval 
beauty,  fresh  from  the  Maker's  hand.  One  rude  gov 
ernment  sawmill  was  the  only  indication  of  the 
transforming  hand  of  civilization.  The  river  was 
then  in  flood,  and  went  roaring  and  dashing  over  the 
overhanging  rock  in  a  sweeping  torrent,  but  very 
faintly  suggested  by  the  present  artificial  rapids. 

After  the  lapse  of  more  than  fifty-six  years,  Mr. 
Pond  visited  the  falls  in  September,  1890,  for  the  last 
time,  and  told  the  writer,  who  stood  beside  him,  the 
story  of  that  first  visit  when 

"  In  the  joy  and  strength  of  youth 
He  stood  upon  that  shore." 


AMONG   THE  DAKOTAS.  35 

The  silent  yet  vivid  memories  of  the  past  which 
passed  in  panoramic  vision  before  the  survivor  of 
more  than  eighty  years  as  he  spoke  of  the  time  when 
he  first  beheld  that  scene,  now  so  changed,  it  were 
vain  for  us  to  attempt  to  describe. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE    CABIN    BY   THE    LAKE. 

ABOUT  seven  miles  northwest  of  Fort  Snelling, 
and  between  three  and  four  miles  west  of  St. 
Anthony  Falls,  now  in  the  suburbs  of  Minneapolis, 
lies  Lake  Calhoun,  so  named  in  honor  of  John  C. 
Calhoun  ;  and  a  few  rods  south  of  it  is  Lake  Harriet, 
named  for  the  wife  of  Colonel  Leavenworth,  first  com 
mandant  at  Fort  Snelling.  Lake  Calhoun  is  a  beauti 
ful  sheet  of  water  and  is  much  the  larger  of  the  two 
lakes,  although  somewhat  surpassed  in  the  beauty  of 
its  surroundings  by  its  smaller  neighbor. 

Around  these  little  lakes  cluster  many  events  of 
special  interest  connected  with  the  early  history 
of  this  section,  and  especially  with  the  early  labors 
of  the  brothers  Pond. 

The  lakes  named  form  central  links  in  a  chain, 
of  which  Cedar  Lake,  Lake  of  the  Isles,  and  Lake 
Amelia  form  additional  links.  The  Indians  called 
Lake  Calhoun  "the  inland  lake,"  meaning  the  lake 
away  from  the  river  ;  and  Lake  Harriet  was  commonly 
mentioned  as  "the  other  lake."  The  low  ground 

36 


i! 


THE  CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE.  37 

lying  partly  between  these  two  lakes  was  the  site  of 
the  summer  village  of  a  band  of  Dakotas  which  rec 
ognized  Mahpiya  Wicasta  (Cloud-Man,  or  Man-of-the- 
Sky)  as  chief. 

This  chief,  in  1834,  was  about  forty  years  of  age, 
respected  and  loved  by  his  people,  and  as  well  obeyed 
as  Indian  chiefs  usually  were.  He  was  an  intelligent 
man,  of  a  good  disposition  and  not  hostile  to  the 
approach  of  civilization  or  blind  to  the  benefits 
which  it  might  bring  to  his  people,  as  were  some 
of  the  neighboring  chiefs,  and  some  also  of  his 
own  people. 

This  village  was  the  nearest  of  the  Indian  villages 
to  Fort  Snelling  and  had  made  some  progress  during 
the  five  years  the  Indians  had  been  located  at  Lake 
Calhoun,  in  cultivating  the  soil  to  raise  corn.  As  the 
Indians  were  compelled  to  dig  up  the  ground  with  hoes 
in  preparing  their  fields,  the  area  planted  was  neces 
sarily  small.  Constant  vigilance  was  also  necessary 
to  save  the  ripening  fields  from  the  ravages  of  the 
blackbirds  (red-winged  starling) ,  who  were  as  fond  of 
the  corn  as  were  its  owners.  In  the  year  18S3,  the 
fur  trader  Philander  Prescott  plowed  a  small  field  for 
his  wife,  who  was  a  native,  but  his  gallantry  does  not 
seem  to  have  prompted  him  to  plow  for  the  wives  of 
his  neighbors.  Plowing  was  one  of  the  arts  of  civili 
zation  which  Indians,  and  especially  Indian  women, 


38  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

could  appreciate.  The  Lake  Calhoun  band  had  first 
been  induced  to  cultivate  the  soil  by  their  agent, 
seconded  by  the  snowstorm  elsewhere  mentioned. 

When  the  agent,  Major  Taliaferro,  learned  that 
the  Pond  brothers  wished  to  build  a  cabin  near  some 
Indian  village,  so  that  they  might  aid  them  and  learn 
their  language,  he  advised  them  to  build  at  Lake  Cal 
houn,  which  they  soon  decided  to  do.  Early  in  June, 
with  the  aid  of  the  chief,  they  selected  a  site  for  their 
house  just  east  of  the  lake,  on  the  site  now  marked 
by  the  ruins  of  the  Pavilion  Hotel. 

To  persons  accustomed  to  the  work  of  building  log 
houses  the  task  does  not  appear  formidable,  but  for 
these  young  men  fresh  from  New  England,  who  had 
scarcely  seen  a  log  house,  the  work  presented  some 
difficulties,  and  it  is  not  surprising  that  Yankee  in 
genuity  did  not  altogether  supply  the  lack  of  experi 
ence.  Their  first  move  was  to  erect  a  temporary 
shelter  of  dried  barks,  such  as  the  Indians  used  for 
roofing.  The  barks  they  found  in  the  woods  near 
where  they  proposed  to  cut  logs  for  their  house,  and 
they  built  their  temporary  shelter  in  the  midst  of  the 
woods  and  of  the  mosquitoes.  An  Indian  woman 
afterwards  claimed  the  barks  as  her  personal  property, 
but  as  she  had  no  present  use  for  them  she  consented 
to  their  furnishing  a  shelter  for  the  white  men  until 
they  should  have  a  better  one.  The  mosquitoes  were 


THE   CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE.  39 

not  so  obliging.  They  were  active,  vigorous,  able- 
bodied  mosquitoes,  champion  warriors  every  one  of 
them,  and  as  numerous  as  the  hosts  of  Lilliput. 
They  had  not  been  enervated  by  a  lengthy  warfare 
with  the  white  race,  during  which  a  constant  infusion 
of  civilized  blood  renders  each  succeeding  generation 
less  warlike  than  the  preceding  one.  Mosquitoes  in 
a  new  country  are  bitter  fighters. 

After  digging  a  cellar  on  the  site  selected,  the 
brothers  proceeded  to  build.  The  following  descrip 
tion  of  the  cabin  was  written  years  afterwards  by  one 
of  the  architects  :  — 

It  was  built  of  logs  carefully  peeled.  The  peeling  was  a  mis 
take.  Twelve  feet  by  sixteen  and  eight  feet  high  were  the  dimen 
sions.  Straight  poles  from  the  tamarack  grove  west  of  Lake 
Calhoun  formed  the  timbers  of  the  roof.  The  roof  itself  was 
the  bark  of  trees  which  grew  on  the  bank  of  a  neighboring  creek 
(now  Bassett's),  fastened  with  strings  of  the  inner  bark  of  the 
basswood.  A  partition  of  small  logs  divided  the  house  into  two 
rooms,  and  split  logs  furnished  materials  for  the  floor.  The  ceiling 
was  of  slabs  from  the  old  government  sawmill  at  St.  Anthony 
Falls.  The  door  was  made  of  boards  split  from  a  log  with  an  axe, 
had  wooden  hinges  and  fastenings,  and  was  locked  by  pulling  in 
the  latchstring.  The  single  window  was  the  gift  of  the  kind- 
hearted  Major  Taliaferro,  the  United  States  Indian  agent.  The 
cash  cost  of  the  whole  was  one  shilling.  New  York  currency,  for 
nails  used  about  the  door.  The  formal  opening  consisted  in  read 
ing  a  portion  of  the  Book  of  books  and  prayer  to  him  who  is  its 
acknowledged  Author.  The  banquet  consisted  of  flour  and  water. 

The  ground  was  selected  by   the  Indian   chief   of  the   Lake 


40  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Calhoun  band,  "  Man-of-the-Sky."  The  reason  he  gave  for  the 
selection  was  that  from  that  point  "  the  loons  would  be  visible  in 
the  lake." 

The  timbers  of  which  the  walls  were  built  were 
large  green  oak  logs,  and  as  they  were  cut  in  June, 
after  the  sap  had  ceased  running,  the  peeling  was  a 
very  laborious  task ;  in  fact,  the  bark  had  nearly  all 
to  be  hewn  off  with  an  axe.  After  they  were  laid  up, 
they  were  found  to  be  so  smooth  that  the  clay  with 
which  the  cracks  between  them  were  to  be  filled  would 
not  adhere  to  them,  but  fell  out.  In  the  selection  of 
this  calking  material  a  mistake  was  also  made.  The 
soil  around  the  cabin  was  well  suited  for  this  purpose, 
and  the  builders  were  so  informed  by  Mr.  Prescott, 
the  trader ;  but  supposing  they  could  find  something 
better,  they  went  a  long  distance  and  with  great  labor 
brought  clay  from  the  bed  of  what  is  now  known  as 
Bassett's  Creek.  As  soon  as  the  clay  began  to  dry  it 
also  began  to  crack,  until  when  cold  weather  came  the 
walls  were  full  of  cracks  from  top  to  bottom.  This 
clay  became,  however,  an  article  of  commerce  with 
the  Indian  boys,  who  made  of  it  missiles  to  throw  at 
the  blackbirds,  and  gladly  exchanged  roasting  ears 
for  it. 

They  had  also  much  trouble  in  getting  their  tama 
rack  poles  across  the  lake,  and  after  having  their 
canoe  nearly  swamped  by  a  strong  wind,  they  cut 


THE   CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE.  41 

loose  from  the  poles,  which  were  obliging  enough  to 
float  over  near  where  they  were  wanted. 

The  cabin  was  completed  early  in  July,  and  of 
the  life  the  brothers  lived  there  Gideon  writes  as 
follows  :  — 

Our  oxen  were  Indian  property,  kept  at  Fort  Snelling.  "With  a 
yoke  of  oxen,  a  chain,  and  some  other  tools,  we  began  to  chop 
timber  and  build  our  cabin,  which  was  a  log  hut  with  bowlders 
from  the  lake  shore  for  a  fireplace  and  chimney.  For  our  supplies 
we  bought  a  barrel  of  pork  and  one  of  flour. 

We  were  unable  to  plant  anything  the  first  year  except  some 
beans,  which  the  pigeons  rooted  up.  Till  our  hut  was  completed 
we  left  our  effects  at  the  Agency,  carrying  on  our  backs  such 
things  as  we  needed.  Sometimes  our  pork  was  stolen  by  the  In 
dians  or  the  dogs,  and  we  lay  down  to  sleep  supperless.  Some 
times  we  dined  on  fish,  but  not  often,  for  it  took  time  to  catch 
them.  More  than  once,  rather  than  make  another  trip  for  provi 
sions,  we  dined  on  mussels.  (S.  W.  Pond  says,  "  They  proved 
very  poor  eating.") 

Cooking  at  first  we  found  very  unpleasant,  as  well  as  our  wash 
ing.  We  did  not  attempt  to  bake  bread  but  a  few  times.  By 
degrees  we  adopted  the  habit  of  frying  our  pork  at  each  meal 
thoroughly,  then,  adding  a  little  water,  we  stirred  in  flour;  for  a 
change  we  made  it  thicker  or  thinner.  This  was  our  food  and 
manner  of  cooking  for  more  Mian  a  year  and  a  half.  We  disliked 
cooking  so  much  that  we  did  not  eat  till  we  were  hungry,  seldom 
more  than  twice  and  often  but  once  a  day. 

The  way  in  which  they  hit  upon  the  method  of 
cooking  their  pork  and  flour  above  described  deserves 
mention. 


42  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  brothers  had  exhausted  their  stock  of  provi 
sions,  and  Samuel  went  to  the  fort  for  a  supply  of 
pork  and  flour.  Being  very  hungry  on  arriving  there, 
he  hastily  kindled  a  fire,  and  cutting  his  pork  into 
small  pieces  fried  it  thoroughly,  then  adding  a  little 
water  and  stirring  in  flour  he  found  the  result  much 
more  of  a  success  than  he  had  expected.  It  took  a 
little  labor  to  convince  the  other  half  of  the  family 
that  pork  and  flour  so  cooked  could  be  eaten,  but  ex 
perience  conquered  prejudice  in  that  case  as  it  has  in 
many  others. 

On  removing  with  their  effects  to  their  new  home, 
the  brothers  felt  as  if  they  dwelt  in  a  palace  with  all 
one  could  desire  at  hand. 

Mrs.  Bliss  gave  them  a  ham  and  her  husband  gave 
them  some  potatoes  for  present  use  and  for  planting  the 
following  spring.  Major  Taliaferro  gave  them,  besides 
the  window,  a  large  padlock  with  which  to  lock  their 
door.  He  also  wished  to  give  them  a  stove,  but  they 
preferred  to  build  a  fireplace,  desiring  to  depend  upon 
their  own  resources  as  much  as  possible  and  preserve 
a  spirit  of  independence.  They  wished  to  make  their 
experiment  at  their  own  cost. 

But  while  they  neither  received  nor  desired  pecun 
iary  aid,  they  fully  appreciated  and  were  deeply  grate 
ful  for  the  moral  support  they  received  from  Major 
Bliss  and  others,  since  this  support  was  needed  to 


THE  CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE.  43 

counteract  the  efforts  of  other  parties  to  excite  the 
prejudices  of  the  Indians  and  create  a  feeling  of 
opposition  to  them. 

The  change  which  occurred  in  the  following  Decem 
ber  at  Mendota,  by  which  H.  H.  Sibley  succeeded 
Mr.  Bailey,  was  an  important  event  for  them,  since 
Mr.  Sibley  was  always  personally  very  friendly,  and 
this  could  never  have  been  the  case  with  Alexander 
Bailey. 

The  twenty- fourth  of  the  following  August  a  letter 
was  written  to  the  friends  at  home,  the  first,  it  would 
appear,  that  was  sent  from  the  cabin  by  the  lake.  A 
part  of  this  letter  is  given  below  :  — 

Dear  Mother,  —  It  is  now  Sabbath  morning,  but  a  Sabbath 
morning  is  not  like  one  in  Washington. 

One  Indian  has  been  here  to  borrow  my  axe,  another  to  have  me 
help  him  split  a  stick ;  another  now  interrupts  me  to  borrow  my 
hatchet;  another  has  been  here  after  a  trap  which  he  left  with 
me;  another  is  now  before  my  window  at  work  with  his  axe, 
while  the  women  and  children  are  screaming  to  drive  the  black 
birds  from  their  corn.  Again  I  am  interrupted  by  one  who  tells 
me  that  the  Indians  are  going  to  play  ball  near  our  house  to-day. 
Hundreds  assemble  on  such  occasions.  What  a  congregation  for 
a  minister  of  Christ  to  preach  to ! 

Alas!  as  far  as  I  know,  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation  never 
reached  the  ears  of  a  Dakota.  Yet  I  cannot  but  hope  that  some 
will  be  gathered  into  the  fold  of  Christ  even  from  among  this  wild 
and  savage  nation. 

Our  house  is  so  far  completed  that  we  have  a  comfortable  home, 
and  are  even  pleasantly  situated.  .  .  . 


44  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  Indians  appear  very  friendly  toward  us.  We  can  talk  with 
them  some  and  they  appear  pleased  to  have  us  build  here.  One  of 
their  principal  men  lately  made  a  visit  to  a  neighboring  village 
and  says  he  told  them  that  two  white  men  had  built  a  good  strong 
house  by  his  village,  which  made  their  (the  other  villagers')  hearts 
feel  bad  because  they  did  not  enjoy  the  same  privileges.  Many 
will  probably  come  here  next  spring. 

Since  I  first  thought  of  coming  here  among  the  Sioux,  I  have  at 
times  felt  much  anxiety,  but  dared  not  do  otherwise  than  come. 
Sometimes  I  have  been  ready  to  faint,  but  "  when  my  foot  slipped, 
then  the  Lord  held  me  up."  .  .  . 

I  can  have  no  doubt  that  the  Lord  has  brought  us  here,  and  he 
has  prepared  the  way  before  us  in  a  very  remarkable  manner. 

Pray  for  us,  that  we  may  render  to  him  again  according  to  his 
benefits  toward  us,  and  I  trust  you  will  pray  for  the  heathen 
around  us.  If  the  Bible  is  in  sight  when  they  come  into  our 
house,  they  frequently  ask  me  to  tell  them  what  it  says.  I  can 
only  tell  them  I  will  do  so  when  I  can  speak  their  language 
well.  Did  Christians  know  the  condition  of  this  nation,  it  seems 
to  me  they  could  not  neglect  them  as  they  do.  If  we  consider  only 
their  temporal  condition,  they  are  most  miserable.  The  men  are 
esteemed  honorable  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  human  beings 
they  have  destroyed,  for  each  of  whom  they  wear  a  feather  in 
their  heads. 

The  whites  do  not  know  how  much  they  fight.  There  has  been 
war  this  summer  between  the  Chippeways  and  Sioux,  I  was  in 
formed  by  one  of  the  principal  Indians  of  this  village.  Their  wars 
are  engaged  in  that  they  may  have  a  chance  to  murder  a  man, 
woman,  or  child,  and  wear  another  feather.  One  Indian  who 
often  calls  on  us,  and  has  given  us  fish,  venison,  etc.,  wears  six 
feathers.  He  is  the  principal  war  chief  in  this  village,  and  is  held 
in  high  estimation  because  he  has  been  so  successful  as  a  murderer. 

The  women  do  all  the  labor,  and  were  I  to  tell  you  all  the  hard 
ships  they  meet  with,  you  would  hardly  believe  me. 


THE  CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE.  45 

I  have  written  but  little  during  the  past  summer,  but  I  have  now 
as  many  conveniences  as  the  prophet  Elisha  had,  and  hope  I  shall 
write  more.  Indeed,  we  are  very  pleasantly  situated.  Last  spring 
I  thought  I  was  going  to  renounce  all  the  comforts  of  civilized 
life,  but,  behold !  here  we  are,  with  a  good  snug  little  house,  de 
lightfully  situated,  surrounded  by  land  of  the  first  quality,  belong 
ing  to  the  United  States,  which  we  occupy  with  the  consent  and 
approbation  of  the  commander  of  the  fort;  with  a  good  yoke  of 
oxen  to  use  as  we  please,  and  possessed  of  the  confidence  of  the 
Indians. 

Pray  for  us,  that  we  may  have  grateful  hearts  and  be  faithful 
unto  death. 

The  following  letter,  written  home  a  few  months 
later,  gives  additional  particulars  regarding  the  cabin 
and  its  environs,  and  was  accompanied  by  a  rude  map 
of  the  present  site  of  Minneapolis,  probably  the 
earliest  chart  of  the  section  ever  made :  — 

I  will  suppose  that  you  should  make  us  a  visit  in  the  summer. 
Leaving  Fort  Snelling  and  traveling  northwest,  you  would  cross  a 
green  and  level  prairie  three  miles  wide,  when  you  would  come 
to  a  beautiful  stream  of  water,  perhaps  half  as  large  as  Shepaug 
Kiver.  It  is  called  by  the  Indians  "  Little  River."  There  are  a 
few*trees  on  either  side  of  it.  It  issues  out  of  a  lake  a  short 
distance  above  the  place  where  we  cross  it,  and  a  little  way  below 
it  falls,  I  think,  nearly  a  hundred  feet.  It  is  a  beautiful  cataract, 
and  I  seldom  pass  by  without  going  to  see  it. 

After  crossing  this  stream  and  getting  out  from  among  the 
trees  which  grow  on  its  banks,  you  would  enter  upon  another 
prairie  stretching  off  to  the  north  as  far  as  you  could  see,  and 
casting  your  eyes  to  the  northwest  you  would  perceive  a  hill, 
which  would  appear  to  you  much  higher  than  any  other  ground 


46 


TWO   VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 


in  sight,  though  indeed  it  is  but  half  a  minute's  walk  from  the 
bottom  to  the  top. 

A  little  to  the  right  of  it  you  would  see  another  piece  of  high 
ground  covered  with  timber.    As  you  drew  near  to  the  hill  first 


-^^%^^^ooA- 

*£rlRrar^7" 

***&& 

^•'f* 


mentioned,  following  an  Indian  footpath,  you  would  see  white 
cloths  fixed  to  the  tops  of  poles.  They  are  waving  over  graves. 
The  top  of  that  hill  is  the  burying  place  of  Indians,  who  always  bury 
their  dead  in  high  places.  If  you  should  go  to  the  top  of  the  hill, 
you  would  see  the  hair  of  the  surviving  friends,  which  they  have 


THE  CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE.        47 

cut  off  and  strewn  about  the  graves.  They  often  cut  themselves 
very  badly  with  knives  when  their  friends  die.  Perhaps,  too,  you 
would  see  some  food  which  they  have  laid  by  the  graves  for  the 
dead  to  eat. 

After  passing  a  little  to  the  right  of  the  burying  place,  you 
would  turn  to  the  left  and  pass  through  the  cornfields  on  your  way 
to  the  village.  Here  you  would  see  the  women  and  the  girls, 
dressed  in  something  like  a  petticoat  and  short  gown,  taking  care  of 
their  corn.  If  the  corn  were  ripe  enough  to  eat,  the  men  and  boys 
would  be  there  too.  If  not,  some  of  the  men  and  boys  would  be 
after  deer  and  fish  and  some  would  be  doing  nothing.  Some  of 
the  men  helped  their  wives  raise  corn  last  year,  and  more  of  them 
said  they  should  next  year. 

A  narrow  lane,  which  the  women  have  made  by  setting  up  posts 
about  as  large  as  a  person's  wrist  and  tying  slender  poles  to  them 
with  bark,  leads  through  the  cornfields  to  the  village.  The  village, 
which  stands  on  the  southeast  side  of  the  lake  [Calhoun] ,  consists 
of  fourteen  dwelling  houses,  besides  other  small  ones.  The  houses 
are  large,  and  two  or  three  families  live  in  some  of  them.  You 
would  not  see  our  house  from  the  village,  but,  turning  to  the  right 
along  the  east  bank  of  the  lake  and  ascending  a  hill,  after  walking 
about  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  you  would  find  our  house  on  the  high 
ground  I  mentioned  before  as  being  covered  with  timber,  between 
the  woods  and  the  lake. 

Our  house  stands  in  a  lot  which  we  have  fenced  with  logs,  and 
which  contains  about  four  acres  of  the  best  of  land.  We  have 
cleared  off  the  most  of  it.  ... 

Our  Indians  have  some  of  them  returned  since  I  have  been 
writing  and  appear  glad  to  see  us.  The  chief  asked  us  if  we  did 
not  feel  bad  to  have  them  gone  so  long.  They  all  come  to  our 
house  to  see  us  and  shake  hands  as  fast  as  they  arrive.  They 
came  yesterday,  and  last  night  made  the  woods  ring  with  their 
savage  yells.  I  believe  they  are  giving  thanks  to  the  Great  Spirit 
for  their  safe  return.  They  say  this  is  customary. 


48  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Oh,  that  some  of  them  might  worship  the  true  God  in  the  beauty 
of  holiness! 

On  the  reverse  of  the  map  mentioned  above  was  the 
following  explanation:  "I  have  made  dots  for  tim 
ber  ;  the  rest  is  prairie.  You  will  see  several  little 
lakes.  They  have  sandy  bottoms  and  abound  in  fish. 
Lake  Calhoun  is  the  largest  one  about  here  and  is 
three  or  four  miles  in  circumference." 

The  Indian  name,  "Little  "Waterfall,"  is  given  in 
the  foregoing  letter  in  speaking  of  the  falls  now  called 
by  white  people  "  Minnehaha."  The  Indians  never 
knew  it  by  the  latter  name,  bestowed  upon  it  by  the 
whites.  The  writer  of  the  foregoing  letter  narrowly 
escaped  drowning  while  attempting  to  bathe  under  this 
stream  of  falling  water. 

The  house  constructed  with  so  much  labor  and  care, 
and  dedicated  to  mission  work  with  so  much  Christian 
zeal,  stood  but  five  years,  and  was  then  torn  down  by  its 
builders  to  get  material  with  which  to  construct  breast 
works  for  the  defense  of  the  Dakotas  after  the  blood}7 
battle  of  Rum  River,  of  which  mention  will  be  made 
later.  In  the  language  of  another  :  u  This  cabin  was 
the  home  of  the  first  citizen  settlers  of  Hennepin 
County,  perhaps  of  Minnesota ;  the  first  schoolroom, 
the  first  house  of  divine  worship,  the  first  mission 
house  among  the  Dakotas."  Dr.  Treat,  Secretary  of 
the  American  Board,  mentions  it  in  an  article  written 


THE  CABIN  BY  THE  LAKE.  49 

in  1869  in  the  following  language:  "The  humble 
cabin  on  the  banks  of  Lake  Calhoun,  erected  in  ad 
vance  of  all  others,  was  a  noble  testimony  to  their 
[the  builders']  faith,  their  zeal,  their  courage." 

One  beautiful  summer  evening,  shortly  after  the  sun 
had  disappeared  behind  the  western  horizon,  the  older 
brother  sat  alone  by  his  lately  completed  dwelling  and 
looked  across  the  lake  at  the  gleaming  west.  The 
sunset  sky  was  lined  with  fleecy  clouds  which  the 
fading  rays  of  the  departing  sun  gilded  a  gorgeous 
crimson.  As  the  watcher  noted  the  surpassing  beauty 
of  the  natural  world,  his  thoughts  were  rudely  re 
called  to  the  sternly  present  reality  of  human  suffering 
and  human  sorrow  by  the  melancholy  wail  of  a  Dakota 
woman  in  the  presence  of  death.  In  some  verses 
written  at  the  time,  Mr.  Pond  expressed  his  renewed 
determination  to  spend  his  life  in  the  effort  to  bring 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  pagans  around  him  the  light 
and  immortality  of  the  Christian  faith. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE    NEW   LANGUAGE. 

IT  has  often  been  represented  by  persons  having  but 
a  superficial  knowledge  of  Indian  languages  that 
they  are  imperfect  and  defective,  and  can  be  made  to 
express  but  a  very  limited  range  of  ideas.  Possibly 
this  may  be  true  of  some  of  the  aboriginal  North 
American  tongues,  but  it  is  certainly  not  true  of  the 
Dakota.  The  Dakota  verb  is  peculiarly  complex,  and 
by  means  of  inflections  expresses  certain  shades  of 
meaning  not  expressed  by  any  of  the  languages  of 
civilization  without  the  introduction  of  adverbial 
phrases.  Its  idiomatic  forms,  some  of  which  are 
highly  figurative,  are  very  numerous,  and  quite  unique 
in  their  character.  While  it  would  require  many  addi 
tions  to  adapt  it  to  the  varied  uses  of  civilized  life, 
the  Dakota  was  quite  complete  enough  to  express  all 
the  thoughts  and  feelings  of  a  Dakota,  and  in  some 
directions  possessed  a  fullness  and  completeness 
scarcely  to  have  been  expected  in  the  unwritten  lan 
guage  of  a  nation  of  wandering  savages. 

In  the  narrative    of    S.   W.   Pond,  the  process  of 

50 


THE  NEW  LANGUAGE.  51 

reducing   the   Dakota   to   a   written    form   is    briefly 
described  as  follows  :  — 

From  the  time  of  our  arrival,  we  considered  the  acquisition  of 
the  Dakota  language  of  paramount  importance,  and,  however  our 
hands  might  be  employed,  this  work  was  not  neglected.  "We 
were  ever  on  the  alert  to  catch  some  new  word  or  phrase  from  the 
mouths  of  the  Indians,  and  though  our  memories  were  retentive, 
we  made  "  assurance  doubly  sure "  by  writing  down  what  we 
learned.  Here  we  met  with  a  serious  difficulty  for  want  of  a 
suitable  alphabet.  "With  the  vowels  we  had  no  difficulty,  for  there 
are  in  Dakota  but  five  vowel  sounds,  and  they  are  common  to  the 
English;  but  with  the  consonants  it  is  different,  for  there  are 
sounds  in  the  language  which  no  English  letter  or  combination  of 
letters  can  be  made  to  express.  To  meet  this  difficulty,  we  took 
such  characters  of  the  English  alphabet  as  are  not  needed  in  the 
Dakota,  and  gave  them  new  names  and  new  powers. 

"We  also  made  the  single  characters  c  and  x  represent  the 
English  sounds  of  ch  and  sh.  When  our  alphabet  was  completed, 
each  letter  had  one  uniform  sound  and  no  two  letters  could  be 
used  to  denote  the  same  sound ;  so  there  is  but  one  way  of  spelling 
any  given  word  in  Dakota,  and  if  one  knows  how  to  pronounce  a 
word,  he  knows  what  letters  to  use  in  spelling  it.  No  time  is 
consumed  in  learning  the  orthography  of  the  language  except  the 
little  that  is  required  to  learn  the  alphabet,  and  this  accounts  for 
the  facility  with  which  the  Dakotas  learn  to  read  and  write.  "We 
arranged  the  alphabet  in  the  summer  of  1834,  and  our  house  was 
completed  and  the  language,  thus  far,  reduced  to  writing  at  about 
the  same  time.  The  house  was  to  stand  but  five  years,  while  the 
alphabet  will  be  used  as  long  as  Dakota  is  written. 

This  alphabet  the  Rev.  Dr.  Neill  calls  the  "  Pond 
alphabet," 


TALLADEGA  COLLEGE 

LIBRARY, 


52  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

SOUNDS  OF  THE  POND  ALPHABET. 

A  sounds  as  a  in  far.  O          sounds  as  o    in  go. 

B  „       6  in  but.  P                  „       p   in  pea. 

C  „       ch  in  cheat  Q  indescribable. 

D  „       d  in  deed.  R  high  guttural. 

E  „       a  in  say.  S          sounds  as  s     in  sea, 

G  low  guttural.  T  „       t     in  tea. 

H  sounds  as  h  in  he.  U                 ,,        oo  in  noon. 

I  „       e  in  see.  W                „       w  in  we. 

J  „       si  in  hosier.  X                 „        sh  in  sheet. 

K  „       k  in  key.  Y                 „       y    in  yeast. 

M  „       m  in  me.  Z                  „       z    in  zeta. 

N  „       n  in  neat. 

The  completeness  of  the  work  thus  speedily  accom 
plished  was  many  years  afterward  referred  to  by 
Dr.  Riggs  in  terms  of  commendation,  mentioning  at 
the  same  time  the  fact  that  it  was  done  some  time 
before  he  came  to  the  mission. 

A  few  unimportant  changes  were  made  in  writing 
the  Dakota  at  the  time  the  dictionary  was  published. 
These  changes  were  suggested  by  Mr.  W.  W.  Turner, 
and  consisted  mainly  in  the  substitution  of  dotted 
letters  for  the  single  letters  r  and  g  as  they  were  used 
in  the  Pond  alphabet,  and  one  or  two  minor  changes 
of  like  nature. 

Soon  after  the  completion  of  the  alphabet,  an  Indian 
named  Mazardhamani  came  and  wished  to  be  taught 
to  read,  if  the  white  men  thought  he  could  learn. 


THE  NEW  LANGUAGE.  53 

They  thought  he  could,  and  as  he  was  of  quick  appre 
hension,  he  soon  learned  to  read  lessons  prepared  for 
him  and  also  to  write  letters  which  his  teachers  could 
understand.  He  was  of  course  the  first  Dakota  who 
learned  to  read  and  write.  Thus  the  first  experiment 
with  the  new  language  proved  satisfactory.  We  shall 
hear  farther  from  this  Indian,  Walking-bell-ringer,  as 
his  name  signifies. 

To  quote  again  from  the  narrative  :  — 

Lieutenant  Ogden  came  to  Fort  Snelling  about  the  same  time 
that  we  did,  but  he  was  then  a  wild  young  man,  and  we  knew  but 
little  about  him  until  the  next  winter,  when  he  became  a  decided 
Christian.  He  was  from  that  time  one  of  the  excellent  of  the 
earth,  one  in  whom  were  united  the  finest  sensibility,  sound 
judgment,  and  strict  integrity.  Soon  after  coming  here  he,  with 
other  young  officers,  to  while  away  the  time,  employed  Scott 
Campbell  (government  interpreter)  to  go  through  the  English 
dictionary  with  them,  they  writing  down  definitions  in  Dakota  as 
he  dictated,  and  Ogden  gave  this  manuscript  to  me. 

Campbell,  who  knew  they  would  never  detect  the  errors,  had 
taken  no  great  pains  to  give  them  correct  definitions,  and  as 
Lieutenant  Ogden  knew  nothing  of  the  Indian  language  and  used 
the  English  alphabet,  many  of  the  words  were  not  easily  deci 
phered  ;  but  with  the  aid  of  the  Indians  we  succeeded  in  getting 
from  the  collection  a  considerable  number  of  words  that  were  new 
to  us,  although  we  could  not  depend  upon  Campbell's  definitions. 

We  learned  the  grammatical  construction  of  the  language  as  a 
child  learns  its  mother  tongue,  for  of  competent  interpreters  there 
were  none.  Madame  la  Chapelle,  of  Prairie  du  Chien,  gave  Mr. 
Gavin  his  first  lessons  in  Dakota,  and  when  he  asked  her  some 
question  about  the  Dakota  verb,  she  replied,  "  If  you  can  find  a 


54  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONABIES. 

verb  in  the  Dakota,  you  are  a  smart  man."  When  I  asked  Scott 
Campbell  how  the  Dakotas  formed  the  future  tense  he  replied, 
"  The  Dakotas  have  no  future  tense; "  but  we  learned  the  rule  for 
the  future  tense,  and  many  other  rules,  without  the  help  of 
interpreters. 

Every  step  in  advance  made  the  next  step  easier,  so  that  when 
we  had  been  here  a  year  we  had  quite  a  large  collection  of  words 
and  had  no  difficulty  in  conversing  with  Indians  so  as  to  make  our 
selves  understood.  It  is  true  we  had  only  made  a  beginning,  but  a 
beginning  is  something,  for  G'est  le  premier  pas  qui  co&te,  and 
they  who  came  after  us  never  knew  what  that  step  did  cost,  for  it 
is  one  thing  to  learn  a  word  or  rule  in  print  or  writing,  and  quite 
another  thing  to  catch  it  from  the  mouth  of  an  Indian.  We  found 
we  could  learn  more  of  the  French  grammar  in  a  week  than  we 
could  of  the  Dakota  in  six  months. 

Nothing  but  unwearied  diligence  on  the  part  of  the 
Pond  brothers  would  have  enabled  them  to  meet  suc 
cessfully  the  obstacles  in  their  untried  path  and 
accomplish  so  rapidly  and  thoroughly  the  work  they 
had  undertaken. 

The  difficult  literary  task  of  marking  out  lines  for 
others  to  follow  in  the  development  of  the  Dakota 
language  in  its  written  form  would  have  afforded 
sufficient  employment  without  the  arduous  manual 
labor  required  to  provide  for  their  own  necessities  and 
aid  in  many  ways  the  Indians  by  whom  they  were 
surrounded. 

The  winter  of  1834-35  was  a  peculiarly  severe  one, 
even  for  the  climate,  where  mild  and  balmy  breezes 


THE  NEW  LANGUAGE.  55 

are  exceptional  in  the  winter  season.  The  far-famed 
dryness  of  the  winter  atmosphere  in  the  upper  Missis 
sippi  region  cannot  altogether  neutralize  the  severity 
of  northwestern  breezes  with  the  mercury  ranging 
from  zero  to  forty  degrees  minus.  The  new  cabin 
was,  however,  comparatively  warm,  the  fireplace  large, 
and  the  wood  near,  for  at  that  time  the  old  forest 
trees  still  stood  almost  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Calhoun. 
Gideon  cut  down  the  large  trees  in  the  adjacent 
woods,  and  drew  them  to  the  door  with  the  cattle, 
where  Samuel,  who  was  a  perfect  genius  with  an 
axe,  speedily  reduced  them  to  a  convenient  size  for 
placing  in  the  aforesaid  fireplace,  where  a  roaring  fire 
was  kept  up  all  day,  and  all  the  long  nights  also,  when 
necessary.  Subsistence  was  mainly  upon  pork  and 
flour,  varied  occasionally  with  venison  steak.  Deer 
were  very  plenty  around  Lake  Calhoun  that  winter, 
and  the  brothers  spent  a  number  of  weary  days  hunt 
ing  them  ;  but  as  they  had  nothing  but  boots  to  wear 
on  their  feet,  were  not  properly  armed  for  that  kind  of 
hunting,  and  were  entirely  inexperienced  in  the  habits 
of  the  deer,  they  were  unsuccessful.  At  one  time 
Samuel  shot  a  deer,  so  that  an  Indian  who  was  passing 
pronounced  it  mortally  wounded  and  volunteered  to 
follow  it  and  bring  back  the  meat ;  but,  as  it  hap 
pened,  the  Indian  was  a  stranger  from  another  village, 
and  neither  deer  nor  Indian  was  seen  afterward. 


56  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Partridges,  which  were  numerous,  were  not  shot  for 
fear  the  deer  would  be  frightened  away. 

There  was,  however,  another  line  of  hunting  in 
which  the  white  men  were  successful.  The  Indians 
had  left  many  steel  traps,  used  in  muskrat  hunting, 
in  the  cabin  for  safe-keeping  during  the  winter. 
These  traps  were  much  larger  than  the  modern 
rat-trap  and  many  of  them  were  provided  with 
two  strong  springs.  The  writer  has  often  trapped 
with  such  traps  and  has  been  once  or  twice  bitten 
by  their  jaws,  and  so  can  testify  to  their  superior 
merits. 

During  the  early  part  of  the  winter,  an  Indian  boy 
became  enraged  at  his  pony  because  he  could  not  catch 
it,  —  no  unusual  thing,  by  the  way,  —  and  in  revenge 
shot  at  it,  breaking  the  poor  beast's  leg.  The  horse 
was  killed  and  left  on  the  low  ground  northeast  of  the 
lake,  where  the  old  motor  line  formerly  ran,  for  the 
wolves  to  live  on  during  the  winter.  Mr.  Pond  took 
an  ox  chain  and  set  a  row  of  steel  traps  around  the 
horse,  fastening  them  to  the  chain.  In  this  way  seven 
wolves  were  caught  in  a  short  time,  and  their  skins 
added  much  to  the  cabin  comforts  during  the  long 
severe  winter  which  followed.  One  of  these  wolves 
was  only  stunned  when  first  knocked  on  the  head  and 
came  to  life  very  suddenly  after  being  thrown  across 
the  shoulder  of  his  captor.  Since  the  latter  had  him 


THE  NEW  LANGUAGE.  57 

by  the  throat,  the  wolf  soon  became  "  dead  again,"  as 
our  Teutonic  neighbors  say. 

As  has  been  said,  the  house  built  by  the  brothers 
had  two  rooms,  an  attic  and  a  cellar.  The  latter  did 
not  prove  entirely  frostproof,  and  their  few  potatoes 
quickly  froze ;  but  frozen  potatoes  were  better  than 
none  and  they  were  eaten  just  the  same.  The  next 
spring  Samuel  made  a  false  floor  two  or  three  feet 
below  the  real  one,  and,  digging  the  cellar  deeper, 
packed  the  dirt  thus  obtained  between  the  two  floors ; 
but  since  the  house  was  not  occupied  another  winter, 
the  labor  was  thrown  away.  The  inner  room  was  used 
as  a  private  apartment  and  sleeping  room,  to  which 
the  general  public  was  not  admitted.  It  was  reserved 
territory,  a  sort  of  "  court  of  the  priests." 

This  first  winter  was  a  very  busy  one  as  well  as  a 
cold  one,  and  the  fact  that  the  mercury  ranged  low, 
and  winter  mails  were  almost  unknown,  did  not  inter 
fere  with  the  work  which  the  brothers  came  to  do,  and 
in  which  all  the  energies  of  their  nature  were  enlisted. 
They  afterwards  looked  upon  their  want  of  success  in 
hunting  during  that  first  winter  as  fortunate,  since 
success  in  that  direction  might  have  diverted  their 
minds  somewhat  from  more  important  work.  There 
was  one  clearly  defined  foundation  principle,  manifestly 
underlying  all  that  these  brothers  did  for  the  Indians 
—  the  principle  of  putting  their  mission  work  first. 


58  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

In  order  to  prosecute  their  work  successfully  they 
deemed  it  essential  that  they  should  fully  understand 
the  language,  habits,  customs,  hopes,  and  fears  of  an 
Indian  ;  that  they  should  be  able  to  talk  like  a  native, 
walk  like  a  native,  and,  as  far  as  might  be,  live  like 
one  —  on  Indian  fare,  in  an  Indian  tent,  with  Indians 
if  need  be.  They  held  the  work  in  which  they  were 
engaged  in  such  paramount  importance  that  the  luxu 
ries  and  comforts  and  even  the  very  necessaries  of  life 
might  be  dispensed  with  in  a  measure,  in  the  prosecu 
tion  of  it.  Cold  and  hunger,  danger  and  exposure, 
winter  and  starvation,  were  but  light  afflictions  scarce 
worth  remembering  and  not  worthy  to  be  mentioned, 
as  were  also  treacherous  dogs,  innumerable  fleas,  and 
occasionally  drunken  Indians  and  Ojibway  bullets. 
They  feared  no  danger,  counted  no  toil  severe,  reck 
oned  nothing  as  worthy  the  name  of  hardship  which 
they  might  encounter  in  the  path  which  seemed  to 
them  the  path  of  duty.  By  bearing  in  mind  these 
facts,  we  shall  be  able  to  account  in  some  measure  for 
their  years  of  service  in  Indian  camps  and  lodges,  and 
not  otherwise. 

The  Indians  were  accustomed  to  give  white  men 
who  lived  among  them  names,  generally  suggested 
by  some  peculiarity  of  person  or  manners,  though  not 
always  thus  suggested.  For  instance,  they  called  Mr. 
Sibley  "  The-tall- white-man  "  ;  another  was  ;t  The-man- 


THE  NEW  LANGUAGE.  59 

who-has-his-hand-bound."  S.  W.  Pond,  the  Indians 
named  Warndee-doota  (Red-Eagle),  and  G.  H.  Pond 
they  named  Mato-hota  (Grizzly-Bear).  Whether  or 
not  these  names  were  suggested  by  real  or  supposed 
personal  characteristics  the  writer  cannot  say,  but  by 
them  the  brothers  were  ever  known  among  the  Dakotas. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

NEW   LABORERS    AND    MODIFIED    PLANS. 

THE  spring  and  summer  of  1835  witnessed  marked 
changes,  at  Fort  Snelling,  at  the  Indian 
village  near  Lake  Calhoun,  and  finally  at  Lake  Har 
riet.  A  new  commandant,  Major  Gustavus  Loomis, 
had  arrived  and  assumed  command  at,  the  fort  the 
preceding  summer.  He  was  in  some  essential  respects 
like  the  great  Gustavus,  who  fell  by  the  Great  Stone, 
for  he  was  very  military  and  somewhat  imperious  ;  but 
he  was  a  stanch  Presbyterian  and  very  friendly  to  the 
infant  missionary  enterprise.  Of  the  change  wrought 
by  his  influence  at  the  garrison,  Gideon  Pond  thus 
speaks,  in  a  letter  dated  February  24,  1835:  — 

S has  gone  to  the  fort  to  spend  the  Sabbath.    This  is  the 

third  he  has  spent  there.  Thursday  I  go  to  attend  prayer  meet 
ing.  Perhaps  you  will  be  surprised  that  there  should  be 
prayer  meetings  at  the  garrison.  I  am,  and  can  but  say, 
"What  hath  God  wrought."  I  should  say  there  was  a  revival 
of  religion  there,  but  there  was  none  there  to  revive,  so  I  will 
rather  say  religion  has  just  begun.  Perhaps  you  have  heard 
before  now  that  an  officer  came  here  last  summer  who  is  a  pro 
fessor  of  religion,  and  there  is  no  risk  in  saying  that  he  is  an 
active  Christian.  His  wife  and  daughter  too  are  Christians  — 
three  alone. 


BRIG.-GEN'L   G.  A,  LOOMIS, 


NEW  LABOEEES.  61 

Last  summer,  when  we  went  to  the  fort,  we  used  to  visit  him 
and  unite  in  prayers,  and  now  there  are  about  fifteen  who  give 
good  evidence  of  having  passed  from  death  unto  life. 

In  May,  Dr.  Thomas  S.  Williamson  and  Alexander  G-. 
Huggins,  with  their  wives  and  young  children,  arrived 
to  share  the  work  among  the  Dakotas,  and  were  warmly 
welcomed  by  the  Messrs.  Pond.  Mrs.  Williamson  was 
also  accompanied  by  her  sister,  Miss  Sarah  Poage. 
Dr.  Williamson  had  been  practicing  medicine  in  south 
ern  Ohio,  where  he  had  built  up  a  substantial  practice 
in  a  growing  town,  had  already  accumulated  some 
property,  and  had  good  prospects  of  a  successful 
career.  His  field  and  prospects  he  cheerfully  aban 
doned  for  what  he  deemed  a  wider  field  of  usefulness 
among  the  Dakotas.  The  remaining  years  of  his  long 
and  busy  life  were  spent  in  arduous  labors  for  this 
savage  people,  seeking  alike  with  untiring  persistence 
their  temporal  and  spiritual  welfare.  He  rarely  prayed 
in  public,  perhaps  not  in  private,  without  introducing 
a  fervent  petition  for  the  poor  Indians,  and  his  life 
was  a  reflection  of  his  prayers. 

Mr.  Huggins  came  in  the  capacity  of  teacher  and 
farmer,  and  with  his  bright  and  attractive  young  wife 
made  a  valuable  addition  to  the  band  of  laborers. 

Soon  after  the  arrival  of  Dr.  Williamson  and  Mr. 
Huggins,  Samuel  Pond  wrote  home  of  the  situation  and 
prospects,  under  date  of  May  31 :  — 


62  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Our  prospects  are  encouraging.  A  great  many  Indians  are 
collected  around  us  who  are  in  some  measure  dependent  upon  us, 
and  we  appear  to  be  gaining  their  confidence  and  respect,  a  thing 
not  easily  done  among  Indians. 

The  Indian  agent,  who  is  an  intelligent  man,  and  very  influen 
tial  with  the  Indians,  is  still  favorably  disposed  toward  us.  He 
visited  the  city  of  Washington  last  winter,  where  he  says  he  tried 
to  get  a  few  hundred  dollars  appropriated  for  the  purpose  of 
paying  us  for  our  labors  among  the  Indians,  and  to  enable  us  to 
do  still  more  for  them,  but  it  is  doubtful  about  his  succeeding. 
"We  have  not  needed  help  yet  and  I  think  there  is  a  prospect  that 
we  shall  not.  Our  wants  will  be  supplied  in  the  way  that  the 
Lord  sees  best. 

There  has  been  a  great  change  in  the  condition  of  things  since 
we  arrived  last  spring.  I  knew  of  but  one  professor  of  religion 
here  then,  a  woman.  Now  two  of  the  most  influential  officers  at 
the  fort  are  decided  Christians,  also  some  of  the  soldiers,  although 
some  of  the  soldiers  that  I  thought  were  Christians  I  have  no 
hope  of  now.  One  missionary,  Dr.  Williamson,  from  Ohio,  accom 
panied  by  a  farmer,  with  their  wives,  has  arrived  here.  I  sup 
pose  they  will  build  near  us,  for  the  Indians  are  leaving  the  other 
villages  to  come  here,  and  they  would  be  left  alone  if  they  should 
go  anywhere  else  in  this  vicinity.  .  .  . 

Dr.  Williamson  is  busily  engaged  in  learning  the  language.  He 
has  a  long  job  before  him.  I  have  had  to  labor  under  many  dis 
advantages  in  learning  the  language  which  Dr.  Williamson  does 
not  labor  under,  as  I  can  tell  him  in  a  few  minutes  what  it  has 
cost  me  a  long  time  to  learn.  .  .  . 

I  have  always  felt  as  if  I  had  done  right  in  coming  here  and 
would  not  leave  it  for  any  place  in  the  world. 

Dr.  Williamson  and  Mr.  Huggins  remained  but  a 
short  time  in  the  vicinity  of  the  fort,  and  then 


NEW  LABOBERS.  63 

ascended  the  Minnesota  River  to  Lac  Qui  Parle,  where 
they  had  determined  to  establish  a  station.  Previous 
to  their  departure,  however,  the  Rev.  J.  D.  Stevens 
arrived  at  Fort  Snelling,  also  under  appointment  from 
the  American  Board.  He  was  at  that  time  a  licentiate. 

After  looking  the  ground  over,  Mr.  Stevens  selected 
a  point  on  the  northwestern  shore  of  Lake  Harriet 
as  a  suitable  site  for  the  buildings  which  he  proposed 
to  erect.  It  was  a  beautiful  spot  and  not  distant 
from  the  Indian  village.  Two  buildings  were  erected, 
the  mission  house  and  a  schoolhouse,  the  latter  being 
the  first  building  erected  in  the  territory  for  school 
purposes. 

On  June  1 1  of  that  year  a  Presbyterian  church  was 
organized  in  one  of  the  company  rooms  at  Fort  Snell 
ing,  and  on  the  fourteenth  of  June,  quoting  the 
words  of  one  who  was  in  the  military  service  at  the 
fort,  "  The  communion  was  administered  for  the  first 
time  in  Minnesota  to  twenty-two  persons  of  Euro 
pean  extraction,  composed  of  officers  and  soldiers  of 
the  garrison,  those  engaged  in  the  fur  trade,  and  the 
mission  families."  This  church,  the  first  church 
organized  in  Minnesota,  was  known  as  the  Church 
of  St.  Peters.  Seven  of  the  original  members  were 
received  on  profession  of  their  faith,  the  fruits  of 
the  revival  the  previous  winter.  Four  ruling  elders 
were  chosen :  namely,  Major  Loomis,  H.  H.  Sibley, 


64  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

S.  W.  Pond,  and  A.  G.  Huggins.  On  the  twenty- 
ninth  of  May  preceding,  Lieutenant  Ogden  had  been 
united  in  marriage  to  the  daughter  of  Major  Loornis, 
and  on  this  occasion  first  sat  at  the  table  of  the  Lord. 

Captain  Loomis,  at  that  time  major  by  brevet,  was 
a,  true  friend  of  all  the  missionaries,  and  of  the 
Messrs.  Pond  in  particular,  whom  he  ever  aided  with 
his  counsel  and  influence.  Lieutenant  Ogden  was 
their  valued  and  familiar  friend.  The  major's  man 
ner  in  prayer-meeting  was  somewhat  military.  "  Nutt, 
pray,"  "  Ogden,  pray,"  was  his  usual  method  of 
directing  his  subordinates  to  take  part  in  the  service. 

The  church  at  this  time  organized,  after  two  or 
three  removals,  became  the  First  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Minneapolis,  and  will  receive  further  notice  later. 

Some  time  during  the  month  of  July,  Mr.  Stevens 
moved  his  family  to  their  new  home  on  the  shore  of 
Lake  Harriet.  The  mission  house  occupied  almost 
the  exact  spot  where  thousands  of  the  citizens  of 
Minneapolis  gather  during  the  summer  months  for 
Sabbath  recreation  in  the  great  pavilion.  The  Stevens 
family  then  consisted  of  Mr.  Stevens,  his  wife  and 
two  boys,  also  Miss  Cornelia  Stevens,  a  niece. 

Miss  Stevens  was  at  that  time  a  young  girl  of  sixteen, 
light-hearted,  brilliant  and  witty,  and  also  strikingly 
beautiful,  if  contemporary  authorities  may  be  relied 
on.  It  is  no  wonder  that  Miss  Stevens  shone  forth 


NEW  LABORERS.  65 

as  a  vision  of  beauty  among  the  homesick  sojourners 
on  the  upper  Mississippi.  It  required  no  small  degree 
of  self-denial  for  delicately  nurtured  women,  accus 
tomed  to  the  comforts  of  civilized  life  and  the  advan 
tages  of  cultured  society,  to  abandon  them  all  for  a 
home  in  an  Indian  village  at  that  time,  and  nothing 
but  the  heroic  devotion  and  Christian  fortitude  which 
characterized  these  noble  women  among  the  early 
missionaries  could  have  made  the  life  endurable. 
Their  chosen  life  was  one  of  danger  as  well  as  toil, 
and  it  is  not  surprising  that  several  of  the  number 
did  not  live  beyond  comparative  youth. 

Miss  Stevens  was  so  young  when  she  came  among 
the  Dakotas  that  she  learned  their  language  with 
comparative  ease,  and  spoke  it  more  fluently  and 
accurately  than  any  other  of  the  missionary  women. 
She  also  had  the  advantage  of  natural  quickness  in 
learning  languages,  which  enabled  her  to  acquire  a 
fluent  use  of  the  French,  an  acquisition  which  aided 
her  in  supporting  her  family  in  later  years. 

Of  the  employments  of  this  summer,  Samuel  Pond 
writes  in  a  letter  for  the  home  circle,  dated  Septem 
ber  25,  1835:  — 

Mr.  Stevens  is  building  about  a  mile  from  us,  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  Indian  village.  Gideon  has  worked  for  him  most  of 
the  time  since  he  began  to  build.  I  stay  at  home  alone  and  spend 
my  time  in  taking  care  of  our  field  and  learning  the  language. 


66  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSION-ARIES. 

"We  planted  about  three  acres  of  corn,  and  it  is  now  about  ripe. 
I  think  it  about  the  best  I  ever  saw.  We  have  a  very  large  crop 
of  potatoes  and  are  able  to  supply  Mr.  Stevens  with  all  he  wants 
for  his  workmen,  and  shall,  I  hope,  have  many  for  the  Indians  to 
plant  next  spring.  .  .  . 

It  is  about  one  year  since  I  wrote  you  saying  that  perhaps  at 
some  future  time  I  might  visit  home.  It  still  seems  probable  to  me 
that  I  shall  if  I  live,  but  it  will  not  be  soon.  I  know  more  of  the 
Indian  language  than  any  one  else  attached  to  the  mission,  and 
unless  something  extraordinary  should  occur,  I  shall  probably 
maintain  the  start  which  I  have  now.  So  long  as  this  is  the  case, 
I  cannot  leave  this  place,  for  others  will  be  in  some  measure 
dependent  upon  me  until  elementary  books  are  prepared.  It 
requires  close  application  and  patient  perseverance  to  learn  an 
unwritten  language,  and  I  hope  you  will  pray  for  me  that  I  may 
feel  the  importance  of  learning  it,  for  unless  I  do  I  shall  make 
but  little  progress. 

This  letter  concludes  with  an  expression  of  surprise 
that  the  friends  in  Washington  should  suppose  that  the 
brothers  were  afraid  of  the  Indians,  since  they  have 
reason  to  believe  that  they  have  more  influence  with 
the  Indians  than  their  chiefs  have  ;  and  also  with  some 
expression  of  the  sense  of  responsibility  resting  upon 
the  writer,  situated  as  he  then  was  in  the  midst  of  a 
benighted  pagan  people  perishing  for  the  knowledge 
of  the  way  of  salvation. 

Gideon  Pond's  labors  for  Mr.  Stevens  that  sum 
mer  were  gratuitous.  In  the  fall,  when  the  corn 
was  gathered  from  the  little  clearing  by  the  Lake 
Calhouu  cabin,  part  was  sold  to  Mr.  Sibley,  and  the 


NEW  LABORERS.  67 

rest,  together  with  a  quantity  of  potatoes,  their  cow, 
and  some  other  property,  the  Pond  brothers  turned 
over  to  Mr.  Stevens  to  become  the  property  of  the 
mission.  For  this  property  they  received  no  remuner 
ation,  and  yet  were  richer  than  when  they  arrived  in 
the  country  in  1834. 

As  winter  drew  near,  Mr.  Stevens  insisted  upon 
their  abandoning  their  cabin  and  removing  to  his 
station  at  Lake  Harriet.  This  they  were  unwilling 
to  do.  It  cost  them  a  severe  struggle  to  abandon 
their  field  and  cabin,  which  represented  so  much  toil, 
and  where  they  also  had  such  flattering  prospects  of 
usefulness,  and  remove  to  a  new  place  to  form  new 
associations,  which  might  prove  neither  congenial  nor 
helpful. 

On  the  other  hand,  Mr.  Stevens  contended  that,  as 
they  had  favored  his  building  at  Lake  Harriet,  they 
were  in  a  measure  responsible  for  his  success,  and 
that  the  Indians  would  not  leave  Lake  Calhoun  village 
so  long  as  they  remained  at  their  cabin.  This  was 
probably  true,  and  they  finally  reluctantly  consented 
to  leave  their  little  field  and  beloved  cabin  ;  and  while 
Gideon  continued  with  Mr.  Stevens,  Samuel  Pond 
went  with  the  Indians  on  their  early  winter  hunt  in 
pursuit  of  deer. 

The  hunting  party  went  up  the  Mississippi,  as  far 
as  the  present  site  of  Anoka,  and  then  ascended  the 


68  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Rum  River,  going  about  ten  days'  journey,  although 
the  distance  traveled  each  day  was  small.  There  were 
fifty  men  in  the  company  and  they  were  of  course 
accompanied  by  their  families,  so  that  the  party  was 
quite  a  large  one.  They  removed  as  often  as  scarcity 
of  game  made  removals  necessary. 

Speaking  of  that  journey,  Mr.  Pond  said  years 
afterward :  — 

The  language  was  the  game  I  went  to  hunt,  and  I  was  as  eager 
in  the  pursuit  of  that  as  the  Indians  were  in  pursuit  of  deer.  To 
me  it  was  no  pleasure  excursion,  and  I  am  glad  it  is  among  the 
things  that  are  past.  I  carried  no  book  except  the  Bible,  and  there 
was  no  agreeable  society  to  make  me  forget  the  discomforts  which 
annoyed  me.  The  society  of  the  Indians  and  dogs  was  not  always 
agreeable,  and  they  were  not  the  only  inhabitants  of  the  tents. 
More  than  once  in  winter  weather  I  have  gone  to  a  distance  from 
the  tents  and,  kindling  a  fire,  stripped  off  my  garments  and  held 
them  in  the  blaze  until  I  thought  the  inhabitants  were  singed  out 
of  them.  But  these  annoyances,  and  others  worse  than  these, 
were  endurable ;  and  this  seemed  to  be  the  quickest  and  indeed 
the  only  way  to  become  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  language, 
habits,  and  character  of  the  Indians.  What  I  learned  about  them 
at  that  time  was  of  great  advantage  to  me  afterwards  in  dealing 
with  them. 

The  mode  of  life  was  substantially  the  same  from 
day  to  day.  The  tents  then  used  in  winter  were  of 
dressed  buffalo  skins,  and  were  habitable  in  severe 
winter  weather  only  as  a  blazing  fire  was  kept  burning 
within.  The  fire  was  in  the  middle  of  the  conical- 


NEW  LABORERS.  69 

shaped  tent  and  the  smoke  —  some  of  it  —  escaped 
through  a  hole  left  open  at  the  top  or  apex  of  the  cone. 

Fresh  meat  was  the  only  food,  and  often  there  was 
but  little  of  that.  It  was  of  course  eaten  without  salt 
or  other  seasoning.  The  entire  company,  save  very 
little  children,  small  enough  to  be  carried  on  the 
backs  of  their  mothers,  made  the  journey  on  foot. 

The  month  spent  in  this  way  taught  the  eager 
student  much  of  Indian  character,  habits,  and  life. 
Many  of  their  peculiar  religious  feasts  were  observed 
by  the  Indians,  and  to  nearly  all  of  them  the  white 
guest  was  invited.  The  strict  military  regulations 
governing  hunting  parties,  by  which  their  movements 
were  regulated  and  controlled,  received  such  practical 
demonstration  as  they  could  not  receive  in  the  peace 
ful  pursuits  of  off-duty  periods.  It  was  only  by  thus 
associating  with  the  Indians,  enduring  their  daily  toils, 
and  entering  into  their  daily  pursuits,  that  their  con 
fidence  could  at  that  time  be  fully  gained. 

After  a  month  of  this  mode  of  life,  Mr.  Pond 
suddenly  determined  to  return  to  Lake  Calhoun. 
Having  made  all  his  preparations  before  mentioning 
to  the  chief  his  purpose,  he  left  the  camp  far  up  on 
Rum  River,  to  undertake  a  journey  of  sixty  miles  or 
more,  in  midwinter,  through  an  unknown  and  track 
less  region.  The  chief  naturally  objected  strongly. 
He  said  it  was  not  safe  to  attempt  the  trip  and  that 


70  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

he  should  be  blamed  if  any  misfortune  occurred  to 
his  guest  on  the  journey.  Finding  his  objections  of 
no  avail,  he  gave  the  white  man  some  excellent  advice 
about  the  care  of  his  hands  and  feet,  and,  soon  after 
he  was  gone,  sent  his  brother  to  follow  and  accompany 
Mr.  Pond  back  to  the  lake.  The  chief's  brother  fol 
lowed  the  track  a  half  day's  journey,  then  returned 
to  camp,  saying  the  white  man's  steps  were  so  long 
that  he  became  discouraged. 

The  first  night  on  the  return  a  fire  was  built  with 
the  aid  of  flint  and  fire-steel,  and  a  camp  made  on 
Rum  River.  The  next  day  the  mouth  of  the  river 
was  reached,  and  the  stream  was  found  to  be  not 
frozen  over,  on  account  of  the  rapidity  of  the  current. 
Mr.  Pond  carefully  made  his  way  on  the  ice  around  the 
mouth  of  the  stream,  testing  the  ice  frequently  with 
a  hatchet  which  he  carried.  He  continued  down  the 
east  bank  of  the  Mississippi  all  day  and  far  into  the 
night,  until  he  heard  the  roar  of  St.  Anthony  Falls, 
which  afforded  the  first  definite  indication  of  his 
locality.  Waiting  there  until  the  moon  rose,  he 
crossed  a  short  distance  above  the  falls,  and,  passing 
over  the  wild  site  of  the  present  city  of  Minneapolis, 
just  at  break  of  day,  tired  and  hungry,  he  reached 
the  cabin  at  Lake  Calhoun. 

He  found  there  some  wood  which  Gideon  had  pre 
pared  in  anticipation  of  his  arrival,  and,  having 


NEW  LABORERS.  71 

kindled  a  fire  and  eaten  some  parched  corn,  his  first 
meal  in  twenty-four  hours,  he  laid  himself  down  and 
soundly  slept,  for  he  had  left  his  underclothing  in 
the  last  fire  kindled  on  the  way  home  —  a  sort  of 
general  cremation. 

During  his  absence  Gideon  Pond  had  a  very  nar 
row  escape  from  drowning  in  Lake  Harriet.  Running 
across  the  lake  one  morning  to  feed  the  cattle  which 
were  kept  on  the  side  opposite  the  mission,  he  found 
himself  on  thin  ice  before  he  suspected  his  danger, 
and  broke  through.  The  water  was  deep  and  no  help 
near,  and  the  only  way  to  escape  was  to  continue 
breaking  the  ice  with  his  hands  until  ice  sufficiently 
strong  to  bear  his  weight  was  reached.  This  he  finally 
succeeded  in  doing,  but  only  after  a  long,  exhausting, 
and  almost  hopeless  struggle.  His  escape  was  doubt 
less  due,  under  Providence,  to  his  extraordinary  skill 
as  a  swimmer,  his  wonderful  determination  and  energy, 
and  his  young  and  vigorous  frame.  An  Indian  was 
drowned  in  precisely  similar  circumstances,  except 
that  the  Indian  had  two  knives  to  assist  him  in 
climbing. 

After  Mr.  Pond's  return  from  the  hunting  trip,  he 
prepared  in  manuscript  a  few  simple  lessons  in  Da 
kota,  and  Miss  Cornelia  Stevens  commenced  to  teach 
the  Indian  children  in  their  native  tongue.  There 
was  also,  not  long  afterwards,  a  small  boarding  school 


72  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

started  for  the  special  benefit  of  the  daughters  of  the 
fur  traders.  Among  those  who  attended  were  Mary 
Mooers,  Lucy  Prescott,  and  others.  With  these  first 
attempts  to  teach  the  Indians  in  their  own  language 
the  year  1835  closed. 

Much  preliminary  work  had  been  done,  the  Indians 
were  friendly,  and  prospects  for  success  at  the  Lake 
Harriet  station  were  encouraging  in  many  respects. 
In  January,  1836,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Stevens  wrote  to  the 
Missionary  Board  at  Boston:  "Mr.  Samuel  Pond  is 
assiduously  employed  in  preparing  a  small  spelling 
book,  which  we  may  forward  next  mail  for  printing." 
This  was  the  first  work  ever  printed  in  the  Dakota 
language. 

In  February,  1836,  a  letter  home  still  further  de 
scribes  matters  at  the  mission  :  — 

If  you  knew  all  the  dealings  of  the  Lord  with  us  since  we  left 
you,  I  think  you  would  praise  him  on  our  account.  We  both 
enjoy  good  health  and  have  a  good  home,  but  we  are  strangers  on 
earth,  and  I  expect  to  start  to-morrow  with  the  Indians  on  their 
spring  hunt.  I  was  with  them  one  month  last  fall.  We  went  ten 
days' journey  to  the  east,  hunting  deer.  We  did  not  go  far  in  a 
day,  however,  and  I  came  back  in  two  days  and  one  night. 

I  go  with  the  Indians  because  I  can  learn  the  language  much 
faster  when  I  am  with  them  and  do  not  speak  English.  It  is  a 
great  undertaking  to  learn  an  unwritten  language,  and  the  Sioux 
is  peculiarly  hard.  The  -missionaries  among  the  Chippeways, 
although  they  have  been  among  them  many  years,  can  none  of 
them  speak  it  well  enough  to  preach.  It  is  easier  than  the  Sioux, 


NEW  LABORERS.  73 

I  am  told  by  those  who  speak  both.  Gideon  and  I  have  made 
good  progress  in  learning  the  Sioux. 

Missionaries  do  not  think  it  their  duty  to  live  with  Indians  in 
order  to  learn  their  language,  though  I  believe  the  missionaries  to 
the  Pawnees  do  so.  It  is  my  duty  to  do  so.  It  is  disagreeable 
living  with  them,  but  the  Lord  is  with  me,  and  whatever  cir 
cumstances  we  are  in,  while  in  him  confiding  we  cannot  but 
rejoice.  .  .  . 

Three  hundred  dollars  annually  have  been  appropriated  for  the 
support  of  our  school.  If  we  get  it,  and  it  is  prudently  managed, 
it  will  be  enough. 

They  never  got  any  part  of  this  appropriation,  as  it 
fell  into  other  hands.  The  foregoing  letter  concludes 
with  a  few  verses  on  the  peace  enjoyed  by  the  Chris 
tian,  and  came  near  being  the  last  the  author  should 
ever  write,  as  the  following  chapter  will  relate. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

A    PERILOUS    WINTER   JOURNEY. 

""TOURING  the  winter  of  1836,  Dr.  Williamson 
-*— ^  wrote  the  brothers  Pond,  urging  that  one  of 
them  should  remove  to  Lac  Qui  Parle  and  aid  him  in 
the  study  of  the  language.  Gideon  Pond  was  dis 
posed  to  go,  but  wished  first  to  know  what  his  work 
would  be  in  the  event  of  his  going.  It  was  therefore 
decided  that  the  older  brother  should  go  first  and  look 
the  ground  over  before  any  decisive  step  should  be 
taken.  In  the  stormy  and  often  severe  month  of 
February,  immediately  after  writing  the  letter  from 
which  extracts  have  been  made,  he  left  Lake  Harriet 
for  Lac  Qui  Parle.  He  was  at  first  accompanied  by 
a  party  of  Lake  Calhoun  Indians  starting  on  their 
spring  hunt. 

The  distance  to  Dr.  Williamson's  station  was  about 
two  hundred  miles,  and  between  Lake  Harriet  and  the 
former  place  there  were  three  trading  posts,  all  on 
the  Minnesota  River.  These  posts  were  at  Little 
Rapids,  Traverse  des  Sioux,  and  Little  Rock.  The 
snow  was  deep  and  the  journey  was  to  be  made  on 

74 


A  PERILOUS  WINTER  JOUENEY.  75 

foot.  Mr.  Pond  had  no  knowledge  of  the  section  of 
country  to  be  traversed,  save  such  information  as  he 
had  been  able  to  gather  by  conversing  with  the  Indians. 
The  summer  road  was  a  well-beaten  track,  but  crossed 
extensive  prairies,  and  was  now  covered  with  snow. 

The  party  left  Lake  Harriet  one  Friday  morning, 
and  Mr.  Pond,  strapping  his  blanket  and  buffalo  robe 
on  his  back,  started  on  what  proved  a  perilous  jour 
ney.  The  weather  was  intensely  cold.  The  first 
night  a  camp  was  made  a  few  miles  below  Shakpe"'s 
village,  the  present  site  of  Shakopee,  but  it  was  too 
cold  to  sleep  much.  The  next  morning  Mr.  Pond 
started  in  advance  with  an  Indian,  to  kindle  a  fire  for 
the  party  at  a  point  of  wood.  When  the  party  came 
up,  the  children  were  crying  and  the  women  wailing 
on  account  of  the  cold.  That  night  Mr.  Pond  found 
his  face  frozen,  for  the  first  and  only  time.  They 
reached  that  night  the  Little  Rapids,  the  present  site 
of  Carver,  where  Oliver  Faribault  at  that  time  had 
a  trading  post,  and  all  remained  there  over  Sunday. 

On  Monday  they  reached  the  Big  Woods,  between 
Belle  Plaine  and  Le  Sueur,  where  Mr.  Pond  left  the 
hunting  party  and  went  on  to  Traverse  des  Sioux. 
He  was  kindly  received  and  entertained  by  Philander 
Prescott,  one  of  the  traders  at  that  place. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  Minnesota  was  the  store 
of  Louis  Proven£al,  who  was  generally  called  Le 


76  TWO  VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONARIES. 

Blanc.  This  man,  Le  Blanc,  was  a  French  Canadian, 
who  had  spent  most  of  his  life  among  the  Dakotas, 
but  was  as  polite  in  his  manners  as  if  all  his  life  had 
been  spent  in  Paris.  He  could  neither  read  nor  write, 
but  kept  his  accounts  by  means  of  picture  writing. 
He  said  this  method  answered  his  purpose,  but  might 
not  be  readily  understood  by  others  in  the  event 
of  his  sudden  death.  A  cluster  of  dots  represented 
powder,  and  straight  marks  in  the  margin  indicated 
the  number  of  cups  of  powder  charged.  For  an  axe, 
gun,  trap,  or  knife  a  picture  of  the  article  was  made. 
The  pictures  were  rude,  but  easily  recognized.  Still 
the  old  man,  with  all  his  ingenuity,  could  not  over 
come  the  difficulty  presented  by  the  names  of  some 
of  his  customers.  Some  gave  him  no  trouble.  For 
Eagle  Head,  he  made  a  man  with  the  head  of  an 
eagle  ;  but  Whistling- Wind,  Spirit- Walker,  Iron-Light 
ning,  Thunder-Face,  and  other  like  names,  it  was 
difficult  to  represent  by  drawings.  His  attempts  to 
represent  things  neither  in  the  heavens  above  nor  in 
the  earth  beneath  were  very  amusing.  Mr.  Pond,  at 
his  request,  wrote  down  in  his  books  these  difficult 
names  for  him. 

From  this  point,  Mr.  Pond's  narrative  is  quoted  :  — 

"  The  distance  from  the  Traverse  to  Little  Rock 

was  fifty  miles.     Two  Canadians  had  come  down  from 

there  for  corn.     They  had  a  horse  and  train,  which  is 


A  PERILOUS  WINTER  JOURNEY.  77 

a  long  wide  board  bent  up  at  the  forward  end  so  that 
when  the  snow  is  hard  it  slides  along  very  well.  The 
load  is  lashed  to  the  train  with  cords.  I  proposed  to 
accompany  these  men  to  Little  Rock  on  their  return. 
On  Friday  we  started,  Mrs.  Prescott  having  given  me 
a  small  loaf  of  bread,  sufficient  for  myself  alone. 
When  we  stopped  at  noon  I  found  that  my  fellow 
travelers  had  nothing  with  them  but  raw  corn,  and 
shared  with  them  my  loaf,  expecting  to  share  with 
them  afterwards  ;  but  when  night  came,  not  feeling 
well,  I  laid  myself  down  for  the  night  before  the  corn 
was  boiled,  and  in  the  morning  it  was  hard  frozen,  so 
we  left  camp  for  the  day's  journey  without  eating. 
About  noon  the  horse  gave  out  and  the  men  prepared 
to  camp. 

"The  next  day  was  Sunday,  therefore  I  hurried  on 
fasting  to  Mr.  Mooers',  at  Little  Rock.  Mr.  Mooers, 
I  found  on  my  arrival,  was  entirely  without  food,  and 
he  and  his  family  were  anxiously  awaiting  the  arrival 
of  their  supply  train.  It  was  found,  however,  that 
a  certain  Frenchman  had  a  small  quantity  of  choice 
seed  corn,  which  could  only  be  eaten  on  condition 
that  Mr.  Mooers  would  agree  to  replace  it  with  similar 
corn.  This  Mr.  Mooers  promised  to  do.  The  corn 
was  accordingly  ground  in  a  hand  mill  and  baked 
into  a  cake.  This  by  no  means  satisfied  us.  I  saw 
hickory  chips  which  the  family  had  boiled  to  obtain 


78  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

nourishment.  Toward  evening  of  the  Sabbath  the 
Frenchmen  arrived  with  the  corn  and  some  Indians 
came  in  with  muskrats,  so  we  had  corn  and  musk- 
rats  for  supper. 

uln  the  evening  a  young  man  came  in  and  danced 
one  of  the  Dakota  dances,  the  '  bear  dance.'  His 
dancing  did  not  please  me  so  well  as  that  of  the 
daughter  of  Herodias  pleased  Herod,  and  I  mention 
it  only  because  this  man  became  my  companion  in  my 
journey  to  Lac  Qui  Parle.  His  name  was  Md-Ma. 
He  was  about  to  go  to  Lac  Qui  Parle,  and  would  be 
my  guide. 

"  I  agreed  to  give  him  a  blanket  when  we  reached 
the  end  of  our  journey,  on  condition  that  he  carry 
my  buffalo  robe  and  make  the  camp  fires.  Mr. 
Mooers  told  me  nothing  about  the  man,  perhaps  knew 
nothing  about  him,  but  his  reputation  must  have  been 
bad,  for  when  our  Indians  heard  that  I  had  started 
with  him,  they  said  he  would  kill  me  before  we 
reached  the  lake.  He  was  a  vagabond,  with  no 
home  nor  friends,  but  the  chief  difficulty  was  that  he 
lacked  common  sense.  If  he  had  not  been  a  fool,  I 
should  have  had  no  trouble  with  him. 

"  For  provisions,  Mrs.  Mooers  gave  us  each  a  small 
corn  cake,  baked  in  a  frying  pan,  one-half  or  three- 
fourths  of  an  inch  in  thickness.  This  was  an  exceed 
ingly  small  provision  for  such  a  journey  to  be  made 


A  PERILOUS  WINTER  JOUENET.  79 

on  foot,  but  Mrs.  Mooers  probably  thought  that 
Ma-Ma,  who  had  a  gun,  might  kill  some  game. 

"We  walked  fast  all  day  Monday,  making  a  long 
day's  journey  and  camping  at  Beaver  Creek  that 
night.  Ma-Ma  ate  his  bread  up  that  evening,  and 
knowing  that  if  I  reserved  any  part  of  mine  I  would 
be  expected  to  share  it,  I  followed  his  example ;  and 
indeed  it  was  not  a  difficult  task  after  an  all  day's 
march  through  the  snow.  I  then  supposed  we  were 
halfway  to  Lac  Qui  Parle,  and  knew  I  could  go  a 
day  or  two  without  food.  I  was  misled  by  Mr. 
Mooers'  statements  in  regard  to  the  length  of  the 
road.  He  said  he  had  known  men  to  go  through  in 
two  days,  but  it  must  have  been  in  long  summer  days 
and  by  the  summer  road,  which  was  shorter,  but  not 
safe  to  travel  in  winter,  for  there  was  a  long  distance 
where  there  was  no  timber. 

4 'We  had  not  traveled  far  Tuesday  when  Ma-Ma 
complained  of  inflammation  of  the  eyes,  commonly 
called  snow-blindness,  and  soon,  lying  down  on  the 
snow,  refused  to  go  farther.  I  took  the  buffalo  robe, 
for  he  would  not  trust  me  with  his  gun,  and  tried  to 
get  him  started,  telling  him  it  would  storm  soon ;  but 
when  he  got  up  he  wasted  much  time  looking  for 
some  lodges  which  he  thought  must  be  near.  We 
made  a  very  short  journey  that  day  and  encamped 
at  the  Hawk  River,  which  the  Indian  said  was  the 


80  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Chippewa.  As  the  mouth  of  the  Chippewa  is  not 
more  than  ten  miles  from  Lac  Qui  Parle,  I  began 
to  suspect,  what  I  afterward  found  to  be  true,  that 
Ma-Ma  knew  nothing  at  all  about  the  country. 

"  That  evening  I  felt  sharp  pains  in  my  eyes,  and, 
profiting  by  Mr.  Mooers'  advice,  I  lay  down  on  my 
back  and  applied  snow  to  them  until  the  pain  was 
gone  and  they  were  well. 

"That  night  it  snowed  and  put  out  our  camp  fire, 
and  in  the  morning  was  still  snowing ;  but  as  we  had 
no  food  and  had  eaten  nothing  since  Monday,  it  being 
now  Wednesday,  there  seemed  to  be  no  way  but  to 
go  on,  which  we  did,  the  Indian  going  before.  Before 
going  far,  we  came  to  the  same  stream  which  we  had 
left  in  the  morning,  and  the  guide  acknowledged  that 
he  was  lost.  It  was  still  snowing  hard,  and  I  told 
him  we  were  only  wasting  our  strength  by  wandering 
about  we  knew  not  whither. 

"  We  were  not  far  from  the  Minnesota  River,  but 
Ma-Ma  affirmed  it  was  a  great  way  off.  We  made  a 
fire  beside  a  large  tree  and  sat  down  by  it,  having 
wrapped  our  blankets  about  us,  and  so  waited  for  the 
storm  to  abate.  It  continued  to  snow  hard  all  day 
and  the  storm  was  succeeded  by  a  blizzard  that  lasted 
twenty-four  hours,  filling  the  air  with  snow  so  that 
we  could  see  but  a  few  feet.  It  also  became  exceed 
ingly  cold.  All  day  Thursday  we  could  do  nothing 


A  PERILOUS   WINTER  JOURNEY.  81 

better  than  wrap  ourselves  in  our  blankets,  sit  still, 
and  meditate.  Judging  from  the  specimens  of  his 
meditations  with  which  my  guide  favored  me,  they 
were  not  of  a  pleasant  character.  He  was  bewildered 
and  stupefied  most  of  the  time.  He  was  sure  we 
should  perish,  and  laid  all  the  blame  on  me  because 
I  had  ventured  on  such  a  hazardous  journey.  He 
spent  much  time  crying.  I  tried  to  encourage  him 
and  sometimes  he  would  cheer  up  and  say  he  was 
glad  I  kept  up  such  good  spirits. 

"I  had  taken  cold  during  the  storm,  and  on 
Thursday  felt  very  weak  from  the  effects  of  it. 
About  sunset  that  day  the  wind  ceased  blowing. 
Our  fire  was  going  out  and  our  stock  of  fuel  was 
exhausted.  I  told  Ma-Ma  to  get  wood,  but  he 
refused  until  I  finally  took  my  hatchet,  pulled  the 
robe  off  from  him,  and  told  him  to  start.  We  soon 
collected  a  supply  of  fuel  for  the  night. 

"Friday  morning  was  clear  and  pleasant,  and  we 
prepared  for  a  start ;  but  Ma-Ma  declared  he  would 
go  back,  and  only  consented  to  go  forward  on  con 
dition  that  I  would  go  before  and  break  the  path. 
The  Indian,  however,  soon  passed  me,  as  I  was  still 
weak  and  obliged  to  stop  often  to  rest.  I  supposed 
that  my  guide  had  gone  on  and  left  me,  but  about 
noon  I  overtook  him. 

"  We  were  now  in  sight  of  the  Minnesota  or  St. 


82  TWO   VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Peters  River,  but  Ma-Ma  declared  it  was  not  the 
Minnesota,  and  he  would  go  no  farther.  I  should 
have  gone  on,  but  did  not  feel  able  to  carry  the 
buffalo  skin,  and  was  unwilling  to  be  without  it  at 
night.  I  was  still  very  weak  from  the  effects  of  my 
cold,  and  also  extremely  thirsty,  but  could  get  no 
water.  I  suffered  that  day  more  from  thirst  than 
hunger.  I  tried  to  chop  a  hole  through  the  ice  with 
rny  hatchet,  but  it  was  very  thick ;  and  after  chop 
ping  till  I  was  tired,  I  drove  a  large  dirk  knife  into 
the  ice  and  broke  it,  and  then  gave  up  the  attempt, 
wishing  to  reserve  my  strength  for  something  else.  I 
found  a  good  camping  place  by  a  large  old  tree,  of 
which  only  the  north  side  was  left. 

"  That  night  each  of  us  slept  —  if  we  slept  at  all  — 
with  one  eye  open.  I  knew  that  my  companion  was 
very  much  afraid  he  should  starve  to  death,  and  could 
save  his  life  by  taking  mine.  I  also  knew  that  he 
was  not  too  good  to  murder  me,  and  could  do  it  with 
perfect  safety,  since  the  wolves  leave  nothing  but 
bones,  and  there  would  be  no  indication  that  murder 
had  been  committed.  He  had  a  gun  and  I  only  a 
hatchet,  so  that  I  seemed  to  be  in  his  power ;  but  he 
had  carried  his  gun  through  the  storm  and  it  would 
probably  have  missed  fire,  so  that  my  weapon  was  on 
the  whole  the  best.  I  do  not  think  he  discovered  that 
I  was  afraid  of  him,  and  I  think  he  had  some  super- 


A  PERILOUS   WINTEE  JOUENEY.  83 

stitious  fears  of  me  and  my  Bible.  Saturday  morning 
he  was  very  cross,  tried  to  pick  a  quarrel,  and  drew 
the  charge  from  his  gun  as  soon  as  it  was  light.  I 
said  little  to  him,  for  I  saw  that  he  meditated  mischief. 
He  said  he  should  go  no  farther,  to  which  I  made  no 
reply. 

"  I  did  not  wait  for  him  to  reload  his  gun.  I  did 
not  expect  to  need  a  buffalo  robe  or  fire  any  more 
on  that  journey,  and  made  up  my  mind  to  use  what 
strength  I  had  left,  believing  that  if  I  failed  to  reach 
Lac  Qui  Parle  before  dark,  it  would  make  but  little 
difference  how  or  where  I  passed  the  night,  for  my 
journeyings  would  all  be  ended.  I  took  only  my 
hatchet  and  blanket,  and  parted  from  my  companion 
without  regret. 

"Where  I  left  Ma-Ma  the  river  was  straight  for  a 
hundred  rods  or  more,  and  so  far  he  could  see  me. 
While  in  sight  I  walked  very  slowly,  for  I  wished  him 
to  think  he  could  overtake  me  when  he  pleased ;  but 
when  I  had  passed  the  bend  in  the  river,  I  quickened 
my  pace  and  found  I  could  walk  quite  rapidly. 

"I  had  recovered  from  my  indisposition,  and  felt 
better  than  I  had  done  for  several  days.  I  was  sur 
prised  that  I  could  walk  so  fast,  for  Thursday  and 
Friday  I  had  supposed  my  strength  was  nearly  ex 
hausted.  After  going  a  short  distance  I  saw  where 
a  wolf  had  drunk  at  a  spring  by  the  bank.  I  drank 


84  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

also  and  was  much  refreshed  by  it.  I  drank  again 
where  the  snow  had  melted  in  the  cavity  of  a  rock, 
and  this  water  was  a  great  help  to  me.  That  was  the 
fifth  day  I  had  been  without  eating,  yet  my  sufferings 
from  hunger  were  not  at  all  severe.  I  remember 
thinking  that  I  had  often  suffered  much  more  from 
the  toothache.  Neither  were  my  mental  sufferings 
acute,  for  I  thought  I  should  soon  reach  Lac  Qui 
Parle  or  —  heaven. 

"We  were  below  the  mouth  of  the  Pejutazi,  or 
Yellow  Medicine,  Saturday  morning,  and  must  have 
been  thirty  miles  or  more  from  the  end  of  our  journey. 
A  little  after  noon  I  found  a  good-sized  stream  com 
ing  in  from  the  north,  which  I  thought  must  be  the 
Chippewa  River.  Mr.  Mooers  had  told  me  that  it 
was  but  three  miles  from  the  Chippewa  to  the  mission, 
which  was  true  of  the  crossing  by  the  summer  road, 
but  not  of  the  mouth  of  the  stream.  I  ascended  the 
bluff  expecting  to  see  the  lake  before  me,  but  no  lake 
was  in  sight,  although  I  could  see  six  miles.  I  felt 
at  that  time  more  discouraged  than  at  any  time  before. 
I  had  walked  that  forenoon,  through  the  deep  snow, 
much  of  the  way  following  the  bends  of  the  river, 
from  near  the  Yellow  Medicine  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Chippewa,  a  distance  of  fully  thirty  miles,  and  my 
strength  was  nearly  exhausted.  If  that  were  the 
Chippewa,  where  was  the  lake?  If  it  were  not  the 
Chippewa,  where  was  I? 


A  PERILOUS  WINTER  JO  US  NET.  85 

"Just  then  I  spied  a  horse  with  a  yearling  colt, 
feeding  by  the  Minnesota,  but  it  seemed  improbable 
that  I  could  catch  them,  and  it  had  cost  me  a  great 
deal  of  labor  to  climb  the  bluff.  I  was  afraid  I  should 
lose  time  and  labor  in  going  down  on  the  bottom 
land  where  the  snow  was  deeper  than  on  the  edge 
of  the  bluff ;  I  however  decided  to  try  the  horses. 

"  As  I  approached  them  they  moved  away,  but 
when  I  held  out  a  handful  of  dry  grass,  they  let  me 
come  near  enough  to  seize  a  short  rope  that  was  on 
the  larger  one's  neck.  My  first  thought  when  I  caught 
the  rope  was  that  if  compelled  to  be  out  another  night, 
I  would  tie  the  colt  to  a  tree  and  kill  it  for  food. 

"The  horse  was  not  a  pony  but  a  tall  animal,  and 
I  was  afraid  I  should  not  be  able  to  mount  him  ;  but 
I  did  so  without  difficulty  and  found  I  had  a  fleet  and 
powerful  animal  under  me.  Without  much  urging  he 
set  off  at  full  gallop,  and  I  soon  found  food  and 
shelter  at  the  home  of  Alexander  G.  Huggins. 

"Ma-Ma  followed  my  track  and  got  there  some 
time  that  night.  I  tried  to  send  the  Indians  after 
him,  but  he  had  lied  to  me  about  his  name,  and  as 
they  knew  no  Indian  of  the  name  given,  they  would 
not  look  for  him.  I  heard  that  he  was  killed  soon 
after.  I  never  knew  just  how  far  we  traveled  that 
last  day.  It  might  have  been  forty  miles.  I  know 
that  I  walked  fast  and  rode  fast  from  daylight  to 


86  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

dark.  We  had  been  fasting,  but  we  had  been  resting 
too,  and  our  lives  were  at  stake.  Ma-Ma  was  a  rapid 
walker,  and  showed  no  signs  of  weakness. 

"I  never  considered  the  privations  of  that  journey 
peculiarly  severe,  and  they  seem  to  me  now  hardly 
worth  relating.  I  am  afraid  I  have  told  the  story  too 
many  times  already.  It  seems  to  me  like  a  worn-out 
story,  but  I  have  told  it  for  the  last  time." 

The  above  was  written  at  the  request  of  the  writer, 
in  1891,  the  last  year  of  Mr.  Pond's  life. 

Mr.  Renville,  who  owned  the  horses  above  men 
tioned,  saw  a  special  providence  in  the  fact  that  of 
all  his  twenty-five  or  thirty  horses,  the  only  ones 
which  could  be  caught  should  have  left  the  herd  at 
that  particular  time  when  there  was  special  need  of 
their  services.  Those  best  acquainted  with  the  pe 
culiar  characteristics  of  Indian  horses  will  be  most 
surprised  at  the  easy  capture  of  this  particular  speci 
men. 

Speaking  of  this  trip  and  others  of  similar  nature, 
Mr.  Pond  said  many  years  afterward  :  — 

u  It  seems  strange  to  me  now  that  we  could  perform 
these  journeys,  exposed  to  the  fiercest  storms,  sleep 
ing  out  in  the  coldest  nights  with  no  protection  from 
the  inclemency  of  the  weather  except  the  clothing  we 
wore  by  day  and  a  blanket  or  buffalo  skin  ;  but  in 


A  PERILOUS  WINTER  JOURNEY.  87 

fact  we  did  not  expect  to  Ibe  comfortable.  If  we 
could  avoid  freezing,  it  was  about  all  that  we  hoped 
for.  When  we  encamped  for  the  night,  the  first  thing 
to  be  done  was  to  scrape  away  the  snow  with  our  feet, 
kindle  a  fire  with  steel  and  flint,  and  gather  wood 
enough  to  keep  it  burning  till  morning.  We  then  sat 
by  the  fire  with  our  blankets  on  our  shoulders  until  we 
were  sleepy.  We  then  drew  ourselves  into  as  small  a 
compass  as  possible,  so  that  we  could  wrap  our  blan 
kets  all  about  us,  leaving  out  neither  our  heads  nor 
our  feet.  Our  naps  were  short,  for  either  the  cold  or 
our  cramped  position  would  soon  awaken  us.  Stirring 
up  the  fire  we  then  sat  by  it  until  we  were  again  sleepy. 
Thus  we  spent  the  night,  alternately  sleeping  and 
waking  till  the  welcome  daylight  came,  when  we  could 
resume  our  journey  and  warm  ourselves  with  exercise. 
I  have  spent  more  than  one  night  thus  alone,  yet  not 
entirely  alone,  for  I  was  serenaded  by  wolves." 

But  slow  progress  was  being  made  at  Lac  Qui  Parle 
in  the  work  of  acquiring  the  use  of  the  Dakota 
tongue,  which  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  when  the  dif 
ficulties  encountered  are  considered.  Dr.  Williamson 
was  a  patient  and  thorough  student,  and  applied  him 
self  to  his  work  with  unwearied  diligence  ;  but  while 
he  could  learn  a  language  with  a  good  degree  of  fa 
cility  when  aided  by  grammar  and  lexicon,  without 


88  TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

these  aids  he  made  slow  progress.  Still,  what  he 
lacked  in  quickness  he  largely  made  up  in  persever 
ance.  Mrs.  Huggins  was  learning  to  talk  with  the 
Indians  and  made  rapid  progress,  for  she  was  young, 
quick  to  learn,  and  her  house  was  constantly  filled 
•with  Indians. 

It  was  soon  decided  that  Gideon  should  remove  to 
Lac  Qui  Parle  the  following  spring. 

After  remaining  at  the  lake  a  short  time,  Samuel 
Pond  returned  on  foot,  leaving  the  station  in  the 
latter  part  of  March,  stopping  for  a  time  at  the 
Indian  camp  a  short  distance  from  where  Fort  Ridgely 
was  afterwards  built,  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Minnesota  River.  The  Lake  Calhoun  Indians  were 
there  for  the  purpose  of  spearing  and  trapping 
muskrats. 

Here  Mr.  Pond  for  the  first  time  found  himself 
unable  to  conform  to  Indian  modes  of  life.  The 
Indians  were  living  altogether  on  the  flesh  of  musk- 
rats,  for  they  were  too  intent  on  obtaining  furs  to 
spend  their  time  on  other  game.  A  hungry  man  may 
eat  muskrats  in  winter  with  a  good  relish,  as  Mr. 
Pond  had  already  proven  by  experience ;  but  the 
weather  was  now  warm,  and  the  season  that  in  which 
the  rats  are  most  fragrant,  as  all  rat  hunters  know, 
and  the  ghastly  heaps  of  carcasses,  denuded  of  their 
skins,  lying  before  the  door  of  each  tent,  were  not 


A  PERILOUS   WINTEE  JOURNEY.  89 

only  offensive  to  the  sight  but  "  emitted  an  offensive 
odor  which  was  borne  on  every  breeze  and  tainted  all 
the  air." 

Mr.  Pond  stayed  there  a  few  days,  hoping  hunger 
would  give  him  an  appetite,  but  hoping  in  vain.  One 
evening  a  young  man  gave  him  a  loon's  egg,  "  a  deli 
cious  morsel,"  and  the  following  morning  he  left 
the  camp  for  Mr.  Mooers'  trading  post.  From  that 
point,  in  company  with  a  Frenchman  and  an  Indian, 
he  walked  to  the  Traverse  in  a  single  day,  a  distance 
of  fifty  miles,  much  of  the  way  through  melting  snow 
and  icy  water.  His  companions  did  not  care  to  re 
sume  the  journey  on  the  following  day.  From  that 
place  he  walked  to  Lake  Harriet,  and  soon  afterward 
Gideon  H.  Pond  went  to  Lac  Qui  Parle,  where  he 
remained  three  years. 

It  was  now  the  spring  of  1836.  The  brothers  had 
been  nearly  two  years  in  the  Indian  country,  and  had 
laid  solid  foundations  for  future  successful  work,  both 
in  the  line  of  becoming  acquainted  with  the  Indians, 
their  language  and  habits,  character  and  modes  of 
thought,  and  also  in  acquiring  the  favor,  confidence, 
and  respect  of  a  large  number  of  Indians  with  whom 
they  had  come  in  contact.  Their  separation  and  re 
moval  just  at  this  time,  when  so  nearly  equipped  for 
their  work  among  the  Lake  Calhoun  Indians,  seems, 
from  a  human  point  of  view,  unfortunate. 


90  TWO  VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONARIES. 

Mr.  Stevens'  presence  at  Lake  Harriet  was  the 
immediate  occasion  of  this  separation,  but  doubtless 
the  unseen  hand  which  guided  their  footsteps  to  the 
shores  of  Lake  Calhoun  made  no  mistakes  in  the  sub 
sequent  moves,  which  human  foresight  could  neither 
predict  nor  understand. 


CHAPTER  VIH. 

LIFE    AT   LAC    QUI   PARLE. 

mission  station  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  was  for- 
-*-  tunate  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  aid,  protection, 
and  patronage  of  Joseph  Renville,  the  most  influen 
tial  man,  by  far,  in  all  that  region.  He  was  at  that 
time,  1836,  somewhat  past  his  prime,  though  still  a 
man  of  great  energy,  and  still  exercising  marvelous 
authority  over  the  Indians  of  the  upper  Minnesota. 
His  mother  was  a  Dakota  and  his  father  is  said  to 
have  been  a  fur  trader,  perhaps  a  half-breed.  In  the 
years  Mr.  Renville  had  spent  in  the  trade  at  Lac  Qui 
Parle,  he  had  accumulated  quite  an  amount  of  prop 
erty  and  a  large  retinue  of  followers,  so  that  in  some 
respects  he  lived  like  a  baron  of  the  feudal  period, 
and  many  of  the  features  of  his  establishment  remind 
one  of  Walter  Scott's  vivid  descriptions  of  life  on  the 
border  in  a  past  age. 

Mr.  Renville  was  somewhat  narrow  in  his  views  and 
dictatorial  in  his  manners,  but  on  the  whole  rendered 
good  service  to  the  mission. 

Dr.  Williamson  and  wife,  and  Miss  Poage,  with 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Huggins,  formed  the  mission  force  at 

91 


92  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

that  place  in  1836,  before  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Pond, 
in  April. 

During  that  summer,  he,  with  the  aid  of  a  French 
laborer,  sawed  by  hand  boards  to  cover  the  mission 
house  at  Lac  Qui  Parle.  Mr.  G.  H.  Pond,  during  the 
whole  course  of  his  life,  was  never  known  to  refuse 
any  burden  of  toil  or  hardship,  whether  in  the  line  of 
manual  labor  or  personal  exposure,  which  seemed  to 
lie  in  his  path,  but  it  is  evident  that  during  this  period 
he  felt  very  keenly  the  fact  that  his  time  was  taken  up 
so  entirely  by  exhausting  manual  labor  that  he  had 
neither  time  nor  opportunity  to  seek  the  spiritual  inter 
ests  of  the  Dakotas  and  was  thus  cut  off  from  the  work 
which  he  loved  so  well. 

He  was  at  this  time  in  advance  of  his  associates  at 
that  station  in  knowledge  of  the  Dakotas  and  per 
sonal  influence  with  them,  and  in  the  use  of  the 
Dakota  language  it  was  admitted  by  all  that  he  ac 
quired  the  ability  to  speak  it  more  like  a  Dakota  than 
any  other  white  man  among  them. 

During  the  winter  of  1836-37,  and  also  the  following 
winter,  translations  of  portions  of  the  New  Testa 
ment  were  obtained  from  Mr.  Renville.  The  portion 
to  be  translated  was  read  to  him  from  the  French 
Bible,  which  he  understood  ;  he  then  translated  the 
passage  into  Dakota,  and  the  passage  was  written 
down  from  his  dictation.  In  this  work  Mr.  Pond 


LIFE  AT  LAC  QUI  PASLE.  93 

labored  with  Dr.  Williamson.  He  also  became  inti 
mately  acquainted  with  a  good  many  of  the  more 
thoughtful  among  the  Indians,  and  labored  with 
untiring  zeal  for  their  conversion.  Among  the  very 
interesting  relics  of  that  period  is  a  slip  of  paper 
bearing  the  names  of  five  Indians  with  this  simple 
endorsement:  u  The  names  of  persons  for  whose  con 
version  I  pray  daily."  It  would  be  interesting  to 
trace  the  subsequent  history  of  those  for  whom  such 
special  intercession  was  made,  but  the  result  of  those 
labors  and  prayers  will  not  be  fully  revealed  until  the 
Book  of  Remembrance  is  opened. 

June  30,  1837,  G.  H.  Pond  commenced  a  private 
diary,  which  he  intended  to  destroy  when  it  had  served 
its  purpose  :  namely,  to  aid  him  in  his  Christian  life. 
Through  the  persuasion  of  others,  he  was  induced  to 
preserve  a  part  of  this,  from  which  a  good  many  inter 
esting  facts  have  been  gleaned.  The  following  are 
extracts :  — 

Monday,  July  3.  Spent  from  eleven  till  half-past  one  in  looking 
over  with  Wamndi-Okiye  (Eagle  Help)  some  simple  translations 
I  made  Saturday. 

Thursday,  13.  I  ought  to  feel  very  thankful  that  God  has  given 
me  the  opportunity  to  collect  two  or  three  words  to-day.  I  feel 
that  my  responsibilities  increase  with  every  word  which  I  learn, 
or  might  learn  and  do  not. 

July  14.  Preparing  boards  for  the  floor  —  a  work  which  is  in 
itself  most  disagreeable,  trying,  and  tedious;  yet  I  feel  grateful 


94  TWO  VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONARIES. 

because  I  have  been  favored  to-day  with  the  company  of  Indians, 
and  though  I  have  been  engaged  in  manual  labor,  have,  I  hope, 
been  able  to  learn  some. 

Monday,  31.  Have  spent  most  of  the  day  with  the  Indians. 
Had*  a  long  interview  with  Wanmdi-Okiye  (wamdee-okeeye)  and 
tried  to  tell  him  why  Christ  died,  and  why  it  is  necessary  that 
men  should  be  made  new  in  the  temper  of  their  minds;  the  dan 
gers  of  self-deception,  the  wickedness  of  forsaking  God;  also  some 
of  his  attributes.  .  .  . 

Friday,  11.  The  Indians  came  to  dance  to  us  to-day,  and  we 
considered  it  to  be  our  duty  to  grievously  offend  them  by  disre 
garding  them ;  the  house,  however,  shook  to  their  praise.  [This 
dance  is  a  begging  ceremony.] 

Monday,  14.  To-day  we  have  had  a  new  exhibition  of  the  grat 
itude  of  these  degraded  heathen  by  a  letter  from  the  principal 
chief  at  this  village,  written  by  Wanmdi-Okiye,  reproaching  us, 
not  in  anger  but  with  savage  mildness,  because  we  teach  that  we 
should  love  others  as  ourselves,  and  do  not  share  with  them  what 
we  ourselves  possess.  May  I  have  grace  to  count  the  reproaches 
of  Christ  among  these  heathen  greater  riches  than  the  pleasant 
society  of  New  England  Christians,  and  give  them  no  occasion 
justly  to  reproach.  May  I  walk  circumspectly,  as  the  eyes  of  all 
are  upon  me,  watching  for  an  inconsistent  word  or  action.  Above 
all  things,  may  I  have  a  lively  faith  in  those  things  which,  being 
unseen,  can  exert  no  influence  except  through  faith. 

[1838.]  July  13.  The  Indians  are  much  terrified,  supposing  a 
man  and  woman  will  come  here  who  have  survived  the  smallpox. 

August  18,  1837,  he  writes  in  a  letter :  — 

Some  of  the  boys  here  have  learned  to  read  and  write  their  own 
language  very  well,  and  very  often  ask  to  be  taught  God's  Word, 
saying  they  will  follow  it.  Others  are  growing  up  in  ignorance, 
as  did  their  fathers  and  mothers,  who,  perhaps  for  fear  they  will 


LIFE  AT  LAG  QUI  PARLE.  95 

be  taught  another  religion  than  their  own,  do  not  wish  them  to  be 
taught  by  the  missionaries.  A  number  of  men  have  learned  to 
read,  and  write  also,  but  as  yet  we  have  no  books.  Some  of  them 
are  very  anxious  to  learn  to  write,  because  they  think  that  what 
they  beg  in  writing  they  will  be  sure  to  obtain,  and  are  not  uiffre- 
quently  much  vexed  because  denied.  Others  are  equally  anxious 
to  learn  in  order  to  become  wise,  and  hope  to  become  enriched  in 
some  way  by  the  Book.  A  few  are  anxious  to  learn  what  is  in  the 
Bible,  and  urge  me  in  learning  their  language  that  I  may  tell  them, 
and  when  I  tell  them  anything  are  not  satisfied  unless  I  write  it 
down  for  them,  because  they  cannot  otherwise  remember  it.  Par 
ticularly  is  this  true  of  Wanmdi-Okiye.  He  seems  to  appreciate 
the  art  of  reading  better  than  most  of  them. 

November  1, 1837.  [Journal.]  I  was  married  this  afternoon  at 
three  to  Miss  Sarah  Poage,  by  Rev.  Stephen  R.  Riggs.  The 
guests  were  the  members  of  the  mission,  Mr.  Renville's  family, 
and  a  number  of  Indians.  I  trust  our  Saviour  was  with  us  by  his 
Spirit  in  our  hearts. 

The  lady  who  thus  became  Mrs.  G.  H.  Pond  was 
a  woman  of  a  modest,  unassuming  character,  but  most 
self-denying  and  exemplary  in  her  Christian  life.  She 
was  in  many  respects  much  like  her  sister,  Mrs.  Dr. 
Williamson,  and,  like  her,  much  beloved  by  all  who 
knew  her.  One  who  was  present  at  that  wedding 
ceremony  speaks  of  it  as  an  occasion  when  the  poor, 
the  maimed,  and  the  lame  were  entertained  according 
to  the  Saviour's  injunction.  Mr.  Riggs,  who  performed 
the  ceremony,  had  arrived  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  a  short 
time  before  with  his  young  wife,  having  been  sent  out 
to  reinforce  the  laborers  who  were  already  in  the  field. 


96  TWO  VOLUNTEEE  MIS  SIGN  ABIES. 

The  winter  which  followed  the  events  last  men 
tioned  was  largely  taken  up  in  obtaining  translations 
and  such  other  labors  as  the  season  and  circumstances 
mafle  necessary. 

Desiring  to  add  to  his  knowledge  of  the  habits  of 
the  Indians  in  their  hunts,  and  to  gain  a  fuller  under 
standing  of  their  manner  of  life  and  motives,  April 
1,  1838,  G.  H.  Pond  left  Lac  Qui  Parle  to  accompany 
a  party  on  their  spring  hunt.  Mr.  Pond,  to  use  his 
own  expression,  wished  to  "  find  what  was  inside  of 
an  Indian,"  and  it  is  safe  to  conclude  that  he  learned 
at  least  how  a  white  man  feels  when  undergoing  the 
perils,  hardship,  and  exposure  attending  the  life  of 
a  savage. 

Leaving  Lac  Qui  Parle  they  ascended  the  Chippewa, 
intending  to  join  other  Indians  who  were  hunting  in 
that  section.  Mr.  Pond  carried  no  baggage  but  a 
blanket.  The  first  night  they  "lay  down  empty,"  to 
use  a  Dakota  expression,  signifying  that  no  game  has 
been  killed  and  the  party  go  to  bed  hungry.  They 
slept  on  the  banks  of  the  Chippewa,  not  taking  time  to 
erect  tents.  Mr.  Pond  had  a  little  food,  taken  from 
home,  which  he  shared  with  his  companions. 

Next  morning  they  came  in  their  journey  to  a 
stream  which,  ordinarily  little  more  than  a  brooklet, 
was  so  swollen  by  rains  and  melting  snows  that  it  was 
scarcely  fordable.  The  Indians  delayed  some  time  on 


LIFE  AT  LAO  QUI  PABLE.  97 

the  bank,  trying  to  devise  some  plan  for  crossing,  each 
waiting  for  another  to  lead  the  way.  The  water  was 
cold,  as  might  have  been  expected,  it  being  the  second 
day  of  April,  and  it  came  up  to  the  shoulders  of  a 
man.  The  young  wife  of  one  member  of  the  party 
was  too  short  to  ford  the  river  herself  alone,  arid  so 
clung  with  her  brown  arms  to  the  neck  of  her  husband 
while  he  waded  over.  The  baggage,  carried  on  the 
head  and  supported  by  the  hands,  was  all  taken  over 
dry,  and,  the  water  being  wrung  from  the  clothes  of 
the  party,  they  were  soon  ready  to  resume  their  march. 

At  the  forks  of  the  Chippewa  the  stream  was  full, 
and  the  afternoon  was  spent  in  crossing  over  in  a 
small  canoe  belonging  to  Tatemima  (Round-Wind), 
who  was  then  encamped  on  the  farther  bank.  Round- 
Wind's  tent  was  of  the  ordinary  dimensions,  perhaps 
twelve  feet  in  diameter,  with  the  fire  in  the  center. 
Besides  the  baggage  of  the  family,  and  numerous  dogs, 
the  tent  that  night  lodged  fifteen  persons,  besides  the 
numerous  minor  inhabitants  always  found  in  Indian 
tents,  but  who,  while  drawing  regular  rations,  are 
never  numbered  on  the  census  rolls. 

At  this  place  Wanmdi-Okiye  (Eagle  Help)  made  a 
small  canoe  for  muskrat  hunting,  delaying  the  party 
two  days.  The  evening  of  the  first  day,  Little  Crow, 
then  a  young  man,  and  his  wife,  whom  he  had  lately 
taken,  brought  in  about  half  a  bushel  of  young  turtles 


98  TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

which  they  had  found  sunning  themselves  along  the 
shores  of  the  river  and  lakes.  Another  brought  in  an 
otter  ;  another  a  crane  and  two  or  three  ducks.  These 
were  to  supply  supper  and  breakfast  for  the  whole 
party.  Little  Crow  was  the  one  who  figured  so  prom 
inently  as  leader  of  the  hostiles  in  the  massacre  of 
1862,  and  was  afterward  shot. 

It  was  painful  to  see  the  turtles  cooked  in  Indian 
style,  alive.  At  first  they  appeared  well  contented 
with  their  bath,  but  as  the  heated  water  approached 
the  boiling  point  they  became  restless,  and  it  was  sport 
for  the  Indians,  large  and  small,  to  beat  them  back  as 
they  attempted  to  escape  over  the  sides  of  the  kettle. 
They  were  finally  boiled  and  served  up  in  wooden 
dishes  with  the  water  in  which  they  had  been  scalded 
to  death  for  broth. 

Round- Wind's  wife,  who  was  the  hostess,  and  very 
respectful  to  her  white  guest,  took  particular  care  to 
wipe  out  his  dish  first  with  a  dry  wisp  of  grass  taken 
from  under  the  mat  on  which  she  sat  and  slept,  and 
afterwards  with  the  corner  of  her  short  gown,  which 
she  had  worn  for  six  months  or  more,  night  and  day, 
without  washing.  Having  thus  cleaned  the  dish,  she 
put  into  it  a  turtle  and  some  of  the  before-mentioned 
broth  and  set  it  before  her  guest.  Pity  and  some  other 
contending  emotions  seriously  affected  the  white  man's 
appetite. 


LIFE  AT  LAC   QUI  PARLE.  99 

"When  the  canoe  was  finished,  Eagle  Help  and  wife 
continued  up  the  left  branch  of  the  Chippewa  to  a 
point  fifteen  miles  distant,  where  six  families  of  In 
dians  were  encamped.  It  was  now  Friday,  and  that 
night  the  persons  above  mentioned  —  namely,  Eagle 
Help  and  companions,  including  Mr.  Pond  —  slept  on 
a  little  hill  covered  with  oaks.  They  had  a  goose  for 
supper,  cooked  in  the  Indian  manner,  the  entrails  being 
roasted  in  the  coals  and  eaten  while  the  goose  was 
being  boiled.  Saturday  morning,  having  breakfasted 
on  what  remained  from  their  supper,  they  continued 
their  march  and  made  camp  early,  and  thus  closed  a 
weary  week. 

The  tepees  stood  on  the  shore  of  a  lake  bordered 
by  trees,  and  the  country  around  was  well  wooded. 
There  were  also  many  lakes  near,  which  made  it  a  good 
hunting  ground. 

Sabbath  morning  Iron-Heart  was  sent  to  the  forks 
of  the  Chippewa  to  borrow  Round-Wind's  horse  to 
haul  a  canoe  from  the  lake  to  the  river.  As  food 
was  scarce,  the  Indians  moved  their  camp,  leaving 
Mr.  Pond  behind  to  rest  on  the  Sabbath  and  rejoin 
them  on  the  following  day.  He  had  a  muskrat  for 
breakfast. 

The  lakes  froze  over  and  the  ducks  disappeared,  so 
that  from  Monday  to  Thursday  in  Cloud-Man's  tent 
there  was  nothing  to  eat  except  one  duck  and  a  few 


100         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

groundnuts  and  some  dead  fish  which  the  Indians 
gathered  on  the  lake  shore  and  pronounced  good. 

Thursday,  three  of  the  tepees  removed  to  the  river 
and  Iron-Heart  came  with  the  horses,  accompanied  by 
Round-Wind  ;  but  the  principal  cause  of  rejoicing  was 
that  Red  Fisher's  son  had  killed  a  goose.  All  the 
men,  seven  in  number,  made  their  supper  from  that 
goose,  and  Mr.  Pond  thought  it  the  best  meal  he  had 
eaten  since  the  muskrat  on  Sunday. 

Friday  morning  there  was  nothing  to  eat,  and  all 
the  Indians  started  early  on  their  hunt  except  Round- 
Wind,  who  went  back  to  the  lake  for  the  canoe,  but 
soon  returned  without  it,  bringing  the  startling  intelli 
gence  that  in  the  night  the  O  jib  ways  had  killed  all  of 
the  inmates  of  the  tents  left  behind  on  Thursday. 
Mr.  Pond  and  Round-Wind  went  at  once  to  the  place 
where  lay  the  scalped  and  mangled  remains  of  their 
companions  of  the  day  before.  They  had  no  tools 
but  a  hoe  and  a  clam  shell,  and  with  these  they  dug  a 
hole  in  the  earth  and  packed  the  bodies,  limbs,  and 
severed  heads  of  the  dead,  seven  in  number,  in  it  and 
hastily  covered  them  with  their  buffalo-skin  tent.  It 
was  found  that  two  of  those  who  occupied  the  tents 
that  night  had  escaped. 

It  appears  that  the  Ojibway  chief,  Hole-in-the-day, 
with  a  small  party,  had  visited  the  tents  in  the  evening, 
professing  peace.  The  Dakotas,  having  killed  a  dog, 


LIFE  AT  LAC   QUI  PABLE.  I()l 

feasted  them,  and  later  in  the  night  the  Ojibways  rose 
upon  their  entertainers  and  killed  them.  Mr.  Pond 
had  not  a  favorable  opinion  of  Round-Wind's  char 
acter,  and  when  years  afterward  he  was  condemned  to 
death  for  his  part  in  the  outbreak  of  1862,  thought 
quite  probably  the  sentence  was  a  just  one  ;  but  of 
his  fertility  of  resource  and  entire  self-possession  at 
this  trying  time  he  always  spoke  in  the  highest  terms, 
saying  that  his  good  conduct  then  showed  that  a  bad 
man  might  sometimes  do  the  right  thing. 

After  having  given  their  late  companions  the  best 
burial  they  were  able,  Round- Wind  and  Mr.  Pond 
ascended  a  neighboring  hill,  where  the  Indian  gave 
the  customary  and  understood  signals  with  his  blanket, 
for  the  benefit  of  any  Dakotas  who  might  be  near 
enough  to  see  them  and  take  warning,  and  then,  with 
the  utmost  dispatch,  the  burial  party  returned  to  the 
camp,  which  they  reached  about  noon.  They  found 
the  tents  down  and  everything  in  readiness  to  start 
for  home.  A  boiled  goose  egg  had  been  kindly  kept 
for  Mr.  Pond,  and  when  he  had  eaten  that,  Round- 
Wind  made  him  mount  his  horse  and  took  him  to  the 
forks  of  the  Chippewa.  Safely  across,  he  made  his 
way  on  foot  toward  Lac  Qui  Parle.  That  night  he 
forded  the  stream  over  which  the  Indian  carried  his 
wife  on  the  way  out,  and  laid  himself  down  without 
fire  or  supper.  Saturday  noon  he  breakfasted  at 


102         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

home,  after  two  weary  weeks  of  missionary  labor 
accompanied  by  extremes  of  peril,  hunger,  and  toil. 

One  of  the  two  who  escaped  in  the  assault  was  a 
mother  whose  babe  was  shot  in  her  arms  while  she 
was  herself  slightly  wounded.  She  concealed  herself 
behind  a  tree  and  thus  escaped  her  enemies.  After 
they  were  gone  she  returned  to  the  tents  and  watched 
till  morning ;  then,  after  the  Indian  manner,  fastening 
two  poles  to  a  horse  and  making  in  that  way  a  rude 
litter,  she  bound  upon  it  a  wounded  boy  and  her  own 
scalped  little  ones  and  went  in  search  of  the  party 
which  had  left  them  the  day  before. 

When  the  news  of  this  cowardly  and  treacherous 
attack  reached  Lac  Qui  Parle  there  was  great  wailing. 
As  was  frequently  the  case  on  such  occasions,  almost 
every  family  in  the  village  was  in  some  way  connected 
with  some  one  or  more  of  those  who  had  been  slain. 
For  many  months  the  Dakotas  mourned  their  slain 
and  carefully  planned  for  revenge.  In  the  heart  of 
a  Dakota  an  act  like  this  is  never  forgiven.  This 
deed  was  revenged  two  years  later  at  Rum  River. 

July  16, 1838.  [Journal.]  Spent  most  of  the  forenoon  in  reading 
the  translation  of  the  story  of  Joseph  by  my  brother  which  Mr. 
Riggs  brought  up  with  him,  and  in  conversation  with  Eagle  Help, 
who  says  he  now  believes  that  all  men  are  sinners,  or  have  hearts 
inclined  to  sin,  although  he  says  he  did  not  believe  it "  when  you  first 
told  me  so."  So  I  was  better  able  to  tell  him  why  Christ  died  and 
the  necessity  of  believing  on  him  in  order  to  be  at  peace  with  God. 


LIFE  AT  LAC  QUI  PARLE.  103 

Wednesday,  18.  I  had  a  visit  this  afternoon  from  Eagle  Help, 
who  had  much  to  say  about  our  labors  here,  other  missions,  wars, 
etc.  One  fact  worthy  of  particular  notice  he  confessed  concerning 
the  nation  of  the  Sioux,  that  "  They  were  wicked  exceedingly," 
to  use  his  own  expression:  "What  God  loves,  is  good,  and  men 
are  commanded  to  do,  they  have  gathered  all  together,  hated  and 
destroyed ;  and  what  God  hates  and  disallows,  they  have  gathered 
all  together  and  love  and  do  that  only."  Oh,  that  he  might  feel 
this  in  regard  to  himself,  repent  and  humble  himself  before  God, 
and  flee  for  refuge  to  the  hope  set  before  him  in  the  Gospel !  How 
blind  to  his  own  danger ! 

Saturday,  26.  This  afternoon  I  had  some  conversation  with 
Kayan  Hotanka,  who  is  strongly  of  the  opinion  that  their  religion 
and  that  of  the  Bible  are  the  same,  and  that  he  has  been  a  Chris 
tian  twenty  years.  Deluded  man !  Can  these  dry  bones  live? 

IT.  [August.]  The  Indians  are  making  the  valley  ring  with  their 
yells  at  scalp  dance,  but  I  hope  their  time  is  short,  as  they  will 
bury  the  scalp  as  soon  as  the  leaves  are  all  fallen  off. 

The  next  entry  was  made  at  Lake  Harriet. 

In  November,  1838,  Dr.  Williamson  came  down  from 
Lac  Qui  Parle  to  Fort  Snelling,  on  his  way  to  Ohio 
to  spend  the  winter.  The  trip  from  the  Traverse  to 
the  fort  was  made  in  the  usual  manner  during  the 
summer  season,  by  boat,  the  boats  used  being  gener 
ally  Indian  canoes  as  in  this  instance.  Mr.  G.  H. 
Pond,  aided  by  Wanmdi-Okiye,  brought  the  doctor 
down  and  was  to  return  with  the  canoe.  It  was  much 
too  late  in  the  season  to  undertake  such  a  journey,  and 
when  Mr.  Pond  was  ready  to  return,  the  Minnesota 
River  was  just  about  to  freeze  over. 


104          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Just  before  leaving  Mendota,  the  brothers  Pond 
visited  Mr.  Sibley's  station  for  the  purpose  of  trans 
acting  some  business  and  were  detained  over  night. 
The  following  morning  at  daylight  Mr.  Sibley  sent 
"  Milor,"  an  old  French  attache,  to  ferry  them  across 
the  river.  Through  some  mismanagement  the  canoe, 
which  was  an  unsafe  one,  was  overturned  as  they 
were  embarking,  plunging  them  all  into  the  deep  and 
ice-cold  water.  When  the  passengers  rose  to  the  sur 
face  the  boatman  was  nowhere  to  be  seen ;  but  soon 
a  glimpse  of  his  red  shirt  in  the  water  showed  where 
he  was,  and  he  was  quickly  brought  to  the  surface. 
Upon  that  he  began  to  chain  his  boat,  not  wishing  to 
run  the  risk  of  another  ducking.  His  passengers  had, 
however,  no  time  to- waste  and  compelled  him  to  ferry 
them  over.  Having  given  the  unwilling  Charon  some 
money  to  warm  himself  with,  the  brothers  walked 
against  a  cold  November  wind  in  their  soaked  and 
freezing  garments,  eight  miles  to  Lake  Harriet.  They 
could  not  stop  to  dry  themselves,  since  Gideon  must 
reach  Traverse  des  Sioux  before  the  river  froze  over. 

The  following  day  in  company  with  Eagle  Help,  he 
embarked  for  home  but  was  obliged  to  abandon  his 
canoe  at  Little  Rapids,  the  present  site  of  Carver,  by 
the  closing  of  the  river. 

His  situation,  bad  enough  before,  became  still  more 
embarrassing,  as  Eagle  Help  was  taken  ill  with  the 


LIFE  AT  LAC  QUI  PAELE.  105 

smallpox.  Eagle  Help,  who  was  distinguished  for  a 
variety  of  accomplishments,  was  counted  among  the 
Indians  a  very  skillful  physician.  He  pointed  out 
some  roots, which  were  dug  up,  and  from  them  a  de 
coction  was  made  for  him  to  drink.  Gideon  Pond 
had  a  good  deal  of  baggage  with  him,  part  of  which 
he  carried  on  his  back  to  the  Traverse,  a  distance  of 
about  forty  miles,  and  then  came  back  with  his  horses 
for  the  remainder.  Having  loaded  his  wagon  with 
the  baggage  and  smallpox  patient,  he  started  on  his 
journey  of  more  than  one  hundred  miles,  through 
deep  snow,  with  the  mercury  below  zero.  He  had  a 
covered  wagon,  but  could  not  ride  in  it  as  one  of  his 
horses  required  constant  urging,  and  he  was  obliged 
to  walk  on  the  north  side  of  the  wagon  in  the  deep 
snow  to  keep  his  team  moving.  His  feet  would 
have  frozen  had  he  not  wrapped  them  in  muskrat 
skins,  obtained  at  a  small  lake  where  the  Sabbath 
was  spent.  He  finally  reached  home,  and  his  Indian 
companion  recovered  and  lived  many  years  afterward. 

That  winter,  1838-39,  Daniel  Gavin  spent  at  the 
Lake  Mission,  taking  the  place  of  Dr.  Williamson 
during  his  absence.  Of  this  eloquent,  cultured,  and 
devoted  Swiss  further  mention  will  be  made. 

The  three  years  spent  at  .Lac  Qui  Parle  were  labo 
rious,  and  in  some  respects  discouraging  years,  but 
they  were  not  spent  in  vain.  There  was  in  them  much 


106          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

annoyance,  and  Mr.  Pond  keenly  felt  the  hindrances 
encountered  in  his  chosen  work  of  preaching  Christ  to 
the  perishing  Dakotas,  but  notwithstanding  the  many 
hours  spent  in  apparently  fruitless  labors,  those  were 
not  lost  37ears,  as  the  Great  Master  counts  time 
improved  or  lost. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

THE    FUR     TRADE    OR    THE    CHRISTIAN    MINISTRY. 

ATTER  G.  H.  Pond  left  Lake  Harriet  in  1836, 
his  brother,  S.  W.,  found  his  position  at  Lake 
Harriet  Mission  neither  pleasant  to  himself  nor  prof 
itable  to  the  Indians.  Mr.  Stevens  knew  nothing  of 
the  native  tongue,  and  was  entirely  dependent  upon 
Mr.  Pond's  services  as  an  interpreter  in  his  intercourse 
with  the  Indians.  In  the  meantime,  Mr.  H.  H.  Sibley, 
then  at  the  head  of  the  fur  trade  in  this  section,  pro 
posed  to  Mr.  Pond  a  partnership  in  the  trade,  includ 
ing  in  the  proposition  Mr.  G.  H.  Pond.  S.  W.  Pond 
had  been  left  in  charge  of  the  post  at  Mendota 
during  a  short  absence  of  Mr.  Sibley  and  knew  some 
thing  of  the  business.  The  prospect  was  alluring. 
The  fur  trade  was  lucrative,  the  proposed  associate  in 
business  being  a  man  of  great  promise  and  a  member 
of  the  Fort  Snelling  church. 

There  was  no  special  obstacle  in  the  way  of  accept 
ing  this  proposal.  Neither  of  the  Ponds,  up  to  that 
time,  had  any  connection  with  any  missionary  society, 
and  they  were  in  no  way  committe'd  to  the  work  of 
missions  or  the  ministry  farther  than  their  church  vows 

107 


108         TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

and  church  covenant  relation  may  be  so  considered. 
It  was  but  natural  that  a  life  which  promised  wealth 
and  influence  in  addition  to  wide  opportunities  of 
doing  good  should  have  appeared  alluring,  but  Christ's 
work  among  the  Dakotas  proved  far  more  attract 
ive.  The  choice  was  soon  made  and  was  followed 
by  no  lingering  regrets. 

In  April,  1836,  S.  W.  Pond  left  the  St.  Peters  for 
Washington,  Conn.,  designing  to  study  for  the  minis 
try,  with  a  view  to  spending  his  life  among  the 
Dakotas.  He  did  not  suppose  that  a  license  to  preach 
or  even  ministerial  ordination  would  add  to  his  useful 
ness  among  the  Indians  or  give  him  more  authority 
with  them,  but  thought  it  might  relieve  him  from 
unpleasant  embarrassments  and  complications  arising 
from  his  association  with  other  missionaries. 

This  journey  was  made  by  the  lake  route  in  a  sailing 
vessel  of  course,  and  as  storms  were  encountered  it 
consumed  a  good  deal  of  time.  From  Buffalo  to 
Albany  he  traveled  by  canal,  and  finally  reached  home 
in  just  six  weeks  from  Fort  Snelling,  a  journey  now 
accomplished  in  about  forty-eight  hours. 

The  following  year,  in  addition  to  pursuing  a  course 
of  theological  studies,  Mr.  Pond  taught  a  winter 
school  and  made  very  considerable  progress  in  the 
study  of  Greek,  being* aided  in  his  studies  by  a  cousin, 
Hiram  Hollister,  then  recently  graduated  from  Yale, 


THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.  109 

and  who  afterward  became  distinguished  in  law  and 
literature,  and  was  author  of  a  history  of  Hayti,  to 
which  island  he  was  sent  as  minister  by  President 
Lincoln. 

Mr.  Pond's  instructor  in  theology  was  the  Rev. 
Gordon  Hayes,  his  former  pastor.  Mr.  Pond  was 
ordained  by  the  South  Association  of  Connecticut  as 
missionary  to  the  Sioux  Indians,  the  certificate  being 
dated  March  4,  1837.  The  ordination  services  were 
held  on  a  week  day  in  the  Congregational  Church  in 
Washington,  where  something  more  than  five  years 
before  the  candidate  had  made  public  profession  of 
his  faith.  The  church  was  crowded  with  the  friends 
and  associates  of  his  early  years,  many  of  whom  had 
united  with  the  church  at  the  same  communion  service 
in  1831. 

The  Congregational  Church  at  Washington  would 
gladly  have  assumed  the  burden  of  his  support  in  his 
missionary  field,  but  as  he  expected  to  labor  in  connec 
tion  with  missionaries  of  the  American  Board,  he 
deemed  it  best  to  decline  the  proposition. 

He  was  anxious  to  return  to  the  field  as  soon  as 
possible,  hence  did  not  wait  for  an  appointment  from 
Boston,  but  left  at  once  for  the  West  by  the  same  route 
as  at  first,  namely,  from  New  Haven  to  New  York  by 
boat,  thence  through  New  Jersey  and  Pennslyvania  by 
stage,  passing  over  a  short  line  of  railroad  in  New 


110         TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Jersey,  where  the  trains  were  drawn  by  horses.  He 
took  deck  passage  the  same  as  before  on  the  Ohio,  but 
did  not  suffer  so  much  discomfort  as  on  the  former 
trip,  as  he  was  provided  with  a  blanket  and  did  not 
contract  cholera. 

On  arriving  at  Prairie  du  Chien,  his  baggage  was 
left  with  Major  Loomis,  and  he  came  on  in  a  small 
boat  with  some  lumbermen  to  Mont  Trempeleau,  where 
he  stopped  one  day  to  see  Rev.  Daniel  Gavin,  who 
had  then  been  with  the  Dakotas  about  a  year.  The 
boat  in  which  Mr.  Pond  came  to  Lake  Pepin  was  in 
charge  of  a  Mr.  Hudson,  for  whom  Hudson,  Wis., 
was  afterward  named. 

The  party  arrived  at  Mr.  Gavin's  place  on  Saturday, 
and  the  boatmen  informed  their  passenger  that  he 
could  not  board  a  steamboat  at  that  place  and  would 
therefore  have  to  go  on  with  them  the  following 
morning  as  they  could  not  be  delayed  longer.  As 
he  had  no  claim  on  them  he  fully  supposed  that 
they  would  go  on  without  him,  but  they  were  still 
there  on  Monday  morning,  and  on  arriving  at  the 
end  of  the  journey  would  take  no  fare  for  the 
passage. 

This  first  interview  with  Mr.  Gavin  was  the  begin 
ning  of  a  friendship  deep  and  lasting ;  the  friendship 
of  congenial  spirits  absorbed  in  one  common  object. 
Many  years  afterward  Mr.  Pond  wrote  of  him  :  — 


THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.  Ill 

"  Although  I  once  had  many  friends, 
I  had  no  other  friend  like  him." 

Mr.  Gavin  and  his  companion,  Mr.  Denton,  were 
French-speaking  Swiss,  sent  out  by  a  society  at  Lau 
sanne  to  labor  for  the  spiritual  welfare  of  the  aborigi 
nes  in  this  far-away  region.  Mr.  Gavin  was  a  man 
of  unusual  ability,  cultivated  mind,  agreeable  manners, 
and  ardent  piety.  His  acquaintance  with  classical 
authors  in  the  Greek  and  Latin  tongues  was  thorough 
and  extensive.  He  was  also  well  read  in  continental 
literature.  He  was  graceful  and  eloquent  in  his  public 
ministrations  and  beloved  by  all  his  associates.  He 
loved  his  native  land  with  all  the  affection  of  a  true 
Swiss,  but  loved  his  Master  with  a  still  stronger  devo 
tion —  that  of  a  true  Christian.  He  was  a  faithful 
soldier,  and  as  such  was  warmly  welcomed  to  the 
difficult  work  among  the  Dakotas. 

The  person  who  had  been  selected  by  the  Swiss  So 
ciety  to  accompany  Mr.  Gavin,  and  who  was  a  warm 
personal  friend,  had  been  drowned  a  short  time  before 
the  date  set  for  them  to  embark,  and  Mr.  Denton 
came  in  his  place.  Mr.  Gavin  had  spent  some  months 
at  Prairie  du  Chien  studying  the  Dakota  with  Madame 
La  Chapelle,  not  a  competent  instructor,  but  perhaps 
better  than  none.  Mr.  Gavin  had  obtained  from  her 
a  number  of  legendary  tales,  which  he  had  written 
down  in  Dakota  at  her  dictation,  but  had  been 


112          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

hindered  in  this  work  by  the  lack  of  a  suitable 
alphabet  and  system  of  orthography,  for  the  French 
system  was  no  better  for  this  work  than  the  English. 
He  was  well  pleased  with  the  system  as  arranged  and 
used  by  the  Ponds  and  at  once  adopted  it. 

Mr.  Pond  reached  Lake  Harriet  in  May,  and 
was  there  met  by  his  brother,  who  had  made  good  pro 
gress  in  the  native  language  during  his  absence,  and 
brought  with  him  to  Lake  Harriet  a  list  of  some  of 
the  words  he  had  gathered.  Miss  Stevens,  also,  had 
improved  her  time  and  had  made  commendable  ad 
vancement  in  learning  to  talk  with  the  Indians  whom 
she  was  teaching. 

Gideon  Pond  returned  to  Lac  Qui  Parle,  while 
Samuel  spent  the  summer  in  the  vicinity  of  Lake 
Harriet  Mission,  receiving  a  commission  from  the 
American  Board  late  in  the  year. 

About  the  first  of  June,  S.  R.  Riggs  and  wife 
arrived  at  that  station  and  remained  there  until  some 
time  in  September.  Mr.  Riggs  improved  the  time  he 
was  detained  there  in  studying  the  rudiments  of  the 
Dakota  language,  under  the  tutorship  of  Samuel  Pond. 
During  the  summer  Mr.  Pond  translated  the  story  of 
Joseph,  and  Mr.  Riggs  took  the  manuscript  with  him 
when  he  went  on  to  Lac  Qui  Parle,  where  it  was 
revised  by  G.  H.  Pond  and  afterwards  published  with 
the  following  title,  "Joseph  Oyakapi  Kin,"  and  was 


THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.  113 

one  of  the  first  books  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
Dakotas.  Translations  of  some  other  portions  of  the 
Bible  were  made  this  year,  1837. 

Some  extracts  from  a  letter  written  home  the  fol 
lowing  autumn  will  perhaps  best  describe  the  progress 
made.  The  letter  was  from  Samuel  Pond  to  his 
mother,  and  was  written  October  14,  1837 :  — 

My  great  business  through  the  summer  has  been  to  learn  the 
Sioux  language  so  as  to  preach  to  them,  and  although  I  have  a 
great  many  things  to  hinder  me,  I  believe  I  am  getting  along  toler 
ably  well.  I  live  about  a  mile  from  the  Indian  village  and  go  there 
almost  every  day  and  stay  a  while  and  talk  with  them  to  learn 
their  language ;  and  I  often  talk  with  them  about  religion.  I  do 
not  think  there  are  any  Christians  among  the  Sioux,  but  some  of 
them  are  beginning  to  gain  the  knowledge  of  God  which  is  neces 
sary  to  their  conversion. 

Last  night  the  Indian  whom  I  first  taught  to  read  stayed  with  me. 
After  I  had  prayed  he  remarked,  that  although  he  did  not  know 
how  to  pray  he  would  try.  He  then  knelt  down  and  prayed  with 
a  fluency  and  propriety  seldom  surpassed  by  Christians  who  have 
had  the  advantage  of  a  Christian  education ;  but  still  I  do  not  think 
he  is  a  Christian,  and  warned  him  against  trusting  in  his  prayers, 
and  thinking  he  could  please  God  without  a  new  heart.  If  I  could 
see  him  a  Christian,  I  would  feel  a  thousand  times  repaid  for  com 
ing  here. 

I  would  give  you  a  translation  of  his  prayer,  but  I  cannot  recol 
lect  it  all,  and  if  I  could  it  would  lose  half  its  force  in  translation. 
He  prayed  in  this  manner :  — 

"  Great  Spirit,  my  Father,  I  would  worship  you,  but  I  do  not 
know  how ;  I  wish  you  would  teach  me.  I  am  wicked  and  wish 
you  would  forget  my  sins.  I  want  a  new  heart.  I  know  nothing, 
and  wish  you  to  teach  me.  I  want  to  understand  your  Book.  I 


114          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

have  grown  up  in  ignorance  and  have  worshiped  stones  and  trees 
and  everything,  but  I  wish  now  to  worship  you  alone.  I  want  to 
throw  away  everything  that  is  bad  and  listen  to  you.  If  I  hear 
evil  conversation  among  men  or  women,  I  will  not  listen  to  it  but 
will  leave  the  house.  I  wish  my  soul  to  be  happy  when  I  die. 
When  the  spirits  of  all  the  dead  are  assembled  in  judgment,  and 
the  bad  are  cast  into  the  fire,  I  want  to  be  saved  with  the  good. 
I  will  not  unite  any  more  with  the  Indians  in  their  idolatrous 
feasts.  I  want  you  to  forget  my  sins.  I  want  the  Son  of  God  to 
forget  my  sins.  [They  have  no  word  for  forgive.]  The  Sioux  are 
all  ignorant  and  wicked.  We  have  all  grown  up  in  ignorance  and 
have  done  wrong.  We  have  forgotten  you  and  have  prayed  to 
things  that  have  no  ears.  I  want  you  to  pity  the  Sioux  and  teach 
them  to  do  right.  I  want  you  to  pity  all  my  relatives.  I  want 
you  to  pity  me." 

The  above  is  a  literal  translation  of  some  of  his  expressions  and 
a  specimen  of  the  whole.  Dakota  will  not  bear  translating  into 
English.  After  all  I  very  much  fear  that  the  Indian  I  have  been 
speaking  of  will  never  become  a  Christian. 

I  have  preached  occasionally  this  summer  to  white  people.  To 
day  some  officers  with  their  wives  came  here  from  the  fort  and  I 
preached  to  about  a  dozen  from  the  twenty-first  verse  of  the 
twentieth  chapter  of  Acts.  I  tried  to  tell  them  the  truth  plainly, 
but  do  not  know  how  much  good  it  will  do  them. 

Although  God  has  not  yet  given  me  any  souls  as  seals  of  my 
ministry  among  the  Indians,  yet  his  continued  goodness  to  me  in 
giving  me  health  and  favor  with  the  Indians,  in  supplying  my 
temporal  wants,  and  enabling  me  to  learn  the  language,  encourages 
me  to  hope  that  I  shall  yet  see  some  of  the  Indians  believing  on 
Christ.  But  let  it  be  as  it  will  be,  I  know  in  whom  I  have  be 
lieved.  The  Lord  is  my  shield  and  will  be  my  exceeding  great 
reward.  I  want  you  to  remember  that  I  have  to  be  continually 

engaged  or  accomplish  nothing.  I  think  of  my  friends  in  W , 

more  than  before  I  went  home  if  possible.  I  remember  all  their 
kindness  to  me  and  hope  the  Lord  will  reward  them. 


THE  CHRISTIAN'  MINISTRY.  115 

The  Indian  whose  prayer  is  given  in  the  foregoing 
letter  was  named  Walking-bell-ringer.  He  never 
became  a  Christian,  but  was  employed  by  the  pioneer 
whiskey  sellers  of  Pig's  Eye  to  induce  Indians  to 
frequent  their  saloons  and  exchange  furs  for  fire 
water.  He  soon  perished  from  the  effects  of  liquor. 
This  prayer  is  doubtless  the  first  recorded  prayer 
addressed  to  the  Great  Spirit  by  an  Indian  of  the 
Upper  Mississippi  bands. 

During  the  year  1837  the  government  made  a 
treaty  with  the  Indians  by  which  the  latter  ceded  to 
the  whites  all  of  their  land  lying  east  of  the  Missis 
sippi,  receiving  in  exchange  certain  annuities  to  con 
tinue  for  twenty  years.  There  were  special  grants  of 
land  to  such  of  the  white  men  living  among  them  as 
had  Indian  wives  and  children  by  them.  To  meet  the 
requirements  of  the  treaty,  many  of  those  who  had 
taken  Indian  wives  and  were  married  in  the  Indian 
manner,  namely,  by  purchase,  were  again  married  in 
legal  form.  Among  others  Mr.  Prescott  was  so 
married  by  S.  W.  Pond  at  Lake  Harriet,  his  older 
children  being  present  as  interested  spectators. 

Some  time  in  the  month  of  October  the  Indians  left 
Lake  Harriet  on  their  fall  hunt.  Mr.  Pond  accompa 
nied  them,  and,  profiting  by  former  experience,  he 
says  he  was  u  more  comfortable,  or  rather  less  un 
comfortable,"  than  when  out  in  the  same  section  two 


116          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

years  before.  The  party  was  a  large  one — three 
hundred  or  more  —  and  carried  no  supplies  with  them, 
and  therefore  sometimes  went  hungry.  There  was 
some  variety  in  the  cuisine  as  dog  feasts  occasionally 
relieved  the  tedium  of  unbroken  venison  diet.  At  one 
time  the  entire  company  was  reduced  to  the  extremity 
of  feasting  on  wild-cat  soup,  and  tried  to  cheer  one 
another  with  the  bold  assertion  "  wild  cat  is  good." 
When  a  hunter  brought  in  some  venison,  however, 
the  wild  cat  unceremoniously  vanished.  So  long  as 
game  of  almost  any  kind  was  plenty,  neither  the 
hunters  nor  their  guest  were  disposed  to  find  fault. 

The  family  with  which  the  missionary  boarded  con 
sisted  of  a  middle-aged  man,  his  wife,  and  two  neph 
ews,  both  old  enough  to  hunt ;  and  as  the  men  were 
all  good  hunters  they  had  always  venison  enough, 
when  any  one  had  any,  and  often  some  to  spare  for 
their  less  skillful  or  less  fortunate  neighbors.  The 
old  man  made  an  estimate  of  the  number  of  deer 
eaten  by  his  boarder,  and  received  pay  for  them,  so 
that  he  and  his  wife  said  it  was  enough ;  and  what 
was  unexpected  and  remarkable,  they  never  afterward 
claimed  that  Mr.  Pond  was  under  any  obligation  to 
them. 

Soon  after  leaving  home,  the  lock  of  Mr.  Pond's 
gun  was  broken  by  a  lad  to  whom  he  lent  it,  which  he 
says  was  fortunate  for  him,  since  the  accident  excused 


THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.  117 

him  from  hunting  and  enabled  him  to  spend  his  time 
more  profitably  otherwise,  as  during  hunting  a  word  is 
rarely  spoken  from  morning  till  night  except  when  a 
deer  is  being  dressed,  while  at  the  camp  the  women 
are  constantly  talking  as  women  will  the  world  over. 
The  only  book  taken  on  this  expedition  was  a  Greek 
Testament,  having  a  lexicon  bound  with  it.  This 
little  book,  now  in  the  possession  of  the  writer,  was 
the  only  congenial  companion  of  these  three  weary 
months  of  wandering.  It  bears  on  the  fly  leaf  some 
lines  composed  and  written  during  that  period  of 
lonely  though  voluntary  exile  :  — 

"  The  joys  that  fade  are  not  for  me, 

I  seek  immortal  joys  above, 
Where  glory  without  end  shall  be 
The  bright  reward  of  faith  and  love." 

It  is  difficult  for  the  inexperienced  in  such  matters 
to  form  even  a  faint  conception  of  life  in  an  Indian 
camp  of  three  hundred  persons,  especially  when  off 
hunting.  Life  in  camp  at  such  times,  while  entirely 
unconventional  and  primitive,  is  exposed  to  constant 
and  vexatious  annoyances.  In  the  first  place,  Indian 
tents  are  always  populous.  And  this  population,  so 
very  numerous,  is  also  very  active  —  an  activity  which 
neither  slumbers  nor  sleeps,  which  knows  neither  wea 
riness  nor  compassion.  The  tents  are,  moreover,  very 


118          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

smoky,  so  that  the  occupant  often  imagines  himself  to 
be  a  side  of  bacon  undergoing  the  curing  process. 

Then  there  are  more  varieties  of  noise  in  an  Indian 
camp  than  the  uninitiated  would  imagine  possible. 
The  dogs,  which  in  a  well-regulated  camp  are  always 
very  numerous,  are  constantly  on  the  alert  and  striving 
to  prove  their  vigilance  by  their  noisiness.  Like  rival 
morning  papers  in  an  ambitious  city,  each  one  is 
exceedingly  anxious  to  u  scoop  "  his  neighbor  by  first 
announcing  the  occurrence  of  anything  new,  from  the 
appearance  of  a  new  moon  to  the  arrival  of  a  hostile 
O  jib  way,  and  as  soon  as  the  first  bark  has  cleft  the 
stillness,  a  discordant  chorus  of  say  six  hundred 
canines,  at  a  very  moderate  estimate,  resounds  to 
the  remotest  border  of  the  camp.  When  Indian  dogs 
get  waked  up  fairly,  like  the  sea  after  a  storm,  they 
are  slow  to  subside. 

In  summer  evenings  the  song  and  drumbeat  ac 
companying  the  scalp  dance  are  very  familiar  sounds 
in  the  Indian  camp.  Their  monotonous  cadence  was 
often  heard  night  after  night  for  weeks  in  succession. 

The  plaintive  song  with  which  the  bereaved  mother 
lamented  her  lost  infant,  or  the  lonely  wife  her  slain 
husband,  in  bitter  and  long-continued  wailings,  was  a 
common  sound,  and  one  of  the  saddest  sounds  when 
heard  in  the  silence  of  the  forest,  in  the  dusk  of  even 
ing,  which  ever  fell  on  human  ear  or  issued  from  human 


THE  CHBISTIAN  MINISTEY.  119 

lips.  It  was  a  wailing  for  the  dead,  relieved  by  no 
hope,  even  dimly  recognized,  of  an  immortality  beyond 
this  life. 

There  is  one  more  combination  of  noises,  painful 
to  the  listener,  whoever  he  might  be,  from  which  in 
those  days  the  Indian  camp  was  rarely  free  during 
the  evening  hours.  Where  the  sick  man  was,  there 
the  medicine  men  were  gathered  together.  The  un 
earthly  groans  and  diabolical  utterances  of  the  sor 
cerers  at  the  bedside  of  the  sick  and  dying  it  would 
be  impossible  to  describe.  They  must  be  heard  to  be 
appreciated.  The  ceaseless  shake  of  the  gourd  rattle 
added  to  the  impressiveuess  of  the  weird  ceremony. 
The  manner  in  which  the  Dakotas  ministered  to  the 
necessities  of  the  sick  and  performed  the  last  sad 
offices  at  the  bedside  of  the  dying  was  enough  to 
make  them  long,  as  they  often  did,  for  death  to  come 
to  them  on  the  field  of  battle.  Scalping,  to  a  rational 
mind,  would  seem  to  have  less  of  terror  than  the  wild 
incantations  of  an  experienced  medicine  man.  It  was 
often  a  relief  to  hear  the  succession  of  shots  which 
Dakotas  fired,  when  death  came, 

"  To  fright  away  the  spirits  dread 
That  hover  round  the  dying  bed." 

They  told  the  camp  that  one  of  the  spirits  —  for 
Dakotas  have  four  souls  —  had  gone  to  the  Great 
Spirit,  and  the  conjuring  of  the  sorcerers  was  over. 


120         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  foregoing  are  but  specimens  of  some  of  the 
daily  experiences  of  Indian  camp  life,  of  the  period 
of  which  we  are  writing.  The  sounds  of  feasting  and 
revelry  mingled  with  the  wailings  of  the  mourner  and 
the  scalp  dance  song ;  the  shouts  and  groans  of  the 
conjurer  blended  with  soft  notes  of  the  lover's  flute  in 
his  evening  serenade  ;  the  songs  of  mirth  with  those  of 
sorrow,  and  notes  of  war  and  hate  with  those  of  love 
and  peace.  All  came  in  one  mingled  medley  to  the 
ears  of  the  weary  listener,  sick  at  heart  with  the  sin 
and  sorrow,  the  sadness  and  suffering,  by  which  he  was 
surrounded  on  every  hand. 

The  direction  taken  by  the  hunters  led  the  party  up 
north  into  the  Ojibway  country  to  the  vicinity  of  Mille 
Lacs,  and  finally  a  roving  party  of  Ojibways  was 
encountered,  between  whom  and  the  Dakotas  there 
chanced  to  be  at  that  time  a  temporary  and  uncertain 
peace,  much  like  that  described  by  Scott  in  The  Lay 
of  the  Last  Minstrel  after  the  single  combat  between 
representatives  of  the  two  border  hosts. 

"  Yet  be  it  known,  had  bugles  blown 
Or  sign  of  war  been  seen, 
Those  bands  so  fair,  together  ranged, 
Those  hands  so  frankly  interchanged 
Had  dyed  with  gore  the  green." 

The  intertribal  warfare,  which  had  gone  on  for 
many  years  between  these  two  neighboring  nations, 


THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTEY.  121 

was  occasionally  interrupted  by  short  periods  of 
peace,  or  to  speak  more  accurately,  seasons  of  armis 
tice.  These  periods,  as  both  parties  well  knew, 
were  sure  to  be  terminated  sooner  or  later  by  some 
act  of  treachery.  In  fact  it  was  well  understood  that 
some  bloodthirsty  or  revengeful  brave  on  the  one  side 
or  the  other  would  improve  the  first  favorable  oppor 
tunity  which  presented  itself  for  striking  a  blow  with 
safety  to  the  aggressor. 

It  was  not  hard  to  find  an  excuse  for  such  an  act, 
since  every  Indian  had  at  some  time  or  other  lost  a 
friend  or  a  relative  by  similar  treachery.  Revenge  is 
the  only  style  of  justice  with  which  an  Indian  is  ac 
quainted,  in  his  experience  with  white  men  as  well  as 
with  red  men,  and  when  he  clothes  himself  in  war 
paint  and  goes  out  to  battle,  it  is  not  for  conquest,  but 
ostensibly,  at  least,  to  revenge  some  real  or  fancied 
injury. 

While  encamped  at  this  place  Mr.  Pond  paid  a 
visit  to  the  Ojibway  camp  and  called  at  the  tent  of 
the  chief.  His  hostess  brought  him  a  large  piece 
of  meat  in  a  maple  dish,  and  although  he  had 
just  eaten,  the  rules  of  Indian  etiquette  did  not  per 
mit  him  to  decline  the  offered  food.  The  meat  was 
black  and  strange  to  him  and  by  signs  he  asked  his 
hostess  what  it  was.  She  pointed  to  an  otter  skin 
over  the  fire  and  said  "  Nokeek."  The  white  guest 


122         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

then  slyly  threw  the  meat  to  a  couple  of  dogs  lying 
near,  but  they  would  not  touch  it.  Returning  the  dish 
to  the  lady  of  the  house  he  withdrew  in  great  embar 
rassment,  with  one  Ojibway  word  indelibly  impressed 
upon  his  memory. 

After  an  absence  of  about  three  months,  some  time 
in  the  month  of  January  Mr.  Pond  returned  to  the 
lake.  He  carried  with  him  on  that  journey,  besides 
the  Testament  already  mentioned,  flints  and  fire  steel 
with  which  to  kindle  fire,  and  a  little  pocket  inkstand. 
He  made  his  pens  in  those  days  of  quills  altogether, 
and  quills  might  of  course  be  obtained  at  any  time. 
He  was  accompanied  on  the  return  journey  by  Walk 
ing-bell-ringer.  As  there  was  at  that  time  a  thaw, 
they  were  obliged  to  wade  through  melting  snow,  and 
often  the  water  came  nearly  to  their  knees  ;  and  since 
their  feet  were  clothed  in  ordinary  Indian  moccasins, 
they  were  of  course  soaking  wet. 

The  Indian,  who  was  some  steps  in  advance,  sud 
denly  stopped  and  broke  into  an  immoderate  fit  of 
laughter.  Such  a  fit  of  merriment  in  an  Indian  would 
be  unusual  in  favorable  circumstances,  and  under 
such  circumstances  was  surprising.  On  being  asked 
the  occasion  of  his  unseemly  mirth,  he  said,  "I  was 
thinking  what  a  fool  you  are  to  be  wading  through  the 
melting  snow  when  you  might  be  in  a  comfortable 
home  with  plenty  of  good  food."  Mr.  Pond  says ; 


THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.  123 

"  Many  a  white  man  would  no  doubt  have  called  me 
a  fool,  but  not  many  would  have  laughed  so  heartily 
while  standing  in  cold  water  up  to  their  knees."  This 
question  of  motives  is  often  a  difficult  one  for  Indians 
as  well  as  for  white  men. 

Soon  after  reaching  Lake  Harriet,  a  letter  was  re 
ceived  from  Mr.  Prescott,  who  was  sick  at  Traverse 
des  Sioux  with  no  one  to  take  care  of  him,  so  Mr. 
Pond  went  up  about  the  first  of  February  to  take  care 
of  Mr.  Prescott  for  a  time,  and  then  of  his  trading 
establishment  while  he  was  removed  to  Fort  Snelling 
for  medical  treatment. 

Here  Mr.  Pond  found  himself  among  the  most  de 
graded  Indians  he  had  ever  seen.  The  Canadian 
employe"  left  by  Mr.  Prescott  at  the  store  was  still 
worse  than  the  savages,  so  that  Mr.  Pond  was  glad  to 
call  occasionally  upon  M.  Le  Blanc,  or  Skadan,1  as 
the  Indians  called  him,  whose  manners  were  always 
polite  and  whose  conversation  amusing. 

About  the  middle  of  April  Mr.  Pond  left  the 
Traverse  on  foot  with  a  chief,  Eagle  Head,  and  his 
son,  a  youth  about  twenty  years  of  age,  to  go  to  Lac 
Qui  Parle.  He  then  proposed  to  return  with  his 
brother  and  establish  a  new  station  near  the  present 
site  of  Fort  Ridgely. 

xLe  Blanc  was  a  translation  of  this  fur  trader's  Indian  name, 
Skadan. 


124         1WO  VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONABIES. 

A  son  of  M.  Le  Blanc,  who  had  married  a  daughter 
of  Eagle  Head,  and  who  had  been  employed  the  pre 
vious  winter  by  Joseph  R.  Brown  and  stationed  at  a 
frontier  trading  post,  had  been  murdered  by  an  Indian 
whom  he  had  insulted,  and  Eagle  Head  was  going  up 
to  bring  home  his  daughter.  As  they  had  no  tent  this 
journey  was  a  very  disagreeable  one.  The  first  night 
out,  on  making  camp,  the  chief  fashioned  a  little 
turtle  of  clay,  and  prayed  to  it  that  they  might  have 
good  weather  on  the  morrow.  The  turtle  saw  fit  to 
grant  the  request  and  the  next  day  dawned  clear. 
That  night  the  ceremony  was  repeated,  but  not  with 
like  result,  and  the  chief  lost  all  faith  in  turtles  and 
said  some  hard  things  about  the  whole  turtle  family. 
Cold  rains  prevailed  and  sleet  fell,  drenching  their 
clothing  and  making  them  thoroughly  wretched  day 
and  night. 

The  country  traversed  was  the  same  as  that  through 
which  Mr.  Pond  passed  with  Ma-Ma  two  years  before, 
except  that  it  being  now  April  they  took  a  more  direct 
course. 

They  reached  the  Chippewa  one  cold,  windy  day, 
and  found  the  stream  high  and  rapid,  and  no  means 
of  crossing  except  a  canoe  which  lay  on  the  opposite 
bank  full  of  water.  Eagle  Head  said  he  was  too  old 
and  his  son  too  young  to  swim  the  river,  and  Mr. 
Pond,  although  perhaps  the  right  age,  naturally  did 


THE   CHRISTIAN  MINIS  TUT.  125 

not  feel  like  plunging  into  the  cold  stream  and  stem 
ming  the  rapid  current,  swollen  by  the  lately  melted 
snows.  Still,  as  they  had  been  out  of  provision  for 
some  time,  and  there  was  no  prospect  that  the  stream 
would  run  by,  and  there  was  an  excellent  prospect  of 
another  storm,  after  waiting  a  while  to  see  what  the 
Indians  would  do,  he  stripped  off  his  garments,  swam 
over  and  got  the  canoe.  He  had  hardly  emptied  the 
water  out  when  he  heard  the  young  man  shout  and  saw 
him  running  down  the  west  bank  of  the  river.  He 
had  found  a  better  place  to  cross  higher  up.  "  So," 
Mr.  Pond  remarks,  "one  of  us  had  a  cold  bath  for 
nothing."  The  next  day  snow  fell  all  day,  but  the 
travelers  were  safely  sheltered. 

The  Pond  brothers  had  determined  to  select  a  place 
for  a  new  mission  station,  since  it  did  not  seem  advis 
able  for  them  to  return  to  Lake  Harriet  while  Mr. 
Stevens  remained  there  and  occupied  that  point. 
They  therefore  made  their  preparations  and  saddled 
their  horses  to  go  in  search  of  a  favorable  location. 
Just  at  this  juncture,  Mr.  Renville  advised  that  the 
enterprise  be  deferred  to  another  year,  and  as  Dr. 
Williamson  did  not  deem  it  best  to  disregard  Mr. 
Reuville's  advice,  he  also  counseled  postponement,  and 
within  one  year  from  that  time  both  the  brothers 
were  again  apparently  permanently  located  at  Lake 
Harriet  with  the  people  of  their  first  love. 


126          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

In  the  meantime,  Mr.  Stevens  had  some  difficulty 
with  the  Indians,  and  wrote  an  urgent  letter  to  Samuel 
Pond  recalling  him  to  Lake  Harriet.  When  the  plan 
for  a  new  station  was  abandoned  for  the  time,  he 
returned  and  continued  to  live  with  Mr.  Stevens  that 
summer. 

Some  time  previous  to  this,  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Stevens, 
Miss  Cordelia  Eggleston,  then  a  young  lady  of  twenty- 
two,  had  joined  the  Lake  Harriet  Mission  in  the  capac 
ity  of  teacher.  She  was  a  great  favorite  with  her 
sister,  Mrs.  Stevens,  who  had  long  and  diligently  laid 
her  plans  to  have  her  younger  sister  associated  with 
her  in  her  work  in  the  Indian  country,  and  was  much 
elated  with  her  success.  The  lady  commended  her 
self  to  all  by  her  amiable  character,  modest  de 
meanor,  and  personal  attractions.  Her  fourteen  years 
of  toil  and  privation  for  the  Dakotas  were  borne  with 
out  a  murmur,  and  reviewed  at  their  close  without  re 
gret.  Dr.  Riggs  mentions  her  in  the  following  fitting 
language  :  "  She  was  a  noble  woman  ;  very  quiet  and 
retiring,  very  pleasant  and  truthful.  No  one  who 
became  acquainted  with  her  could  help  admiring  her 
character  as  a  woman  and  a  Christian."  During  the 
spring  and  summer  following  Mr.  Pond's  return  to 
Lake  Harriet,  he  saw  much  of  this  young  teacher  and 
the  acquaintance  resulted  in  a  marriage  engagement, 
after  a  brief  courtship  in  the  beautiful  groves  border 
ing  the  lovely  lake. 


THE  CHRISTIAN  MINISTRY.  127 

In  this  year,  1838,  the  treaty  of  1837  was  confirmed 
and  this  treaty  provided  for  the  appointment  of  far 
mers  for  the  different  bands  of  the  Sioux  who  were 
parties  to  it.  Applications  were  filed  with  Major 
Taliaferro,  who  had  the  appointing  power,  for  the 
position  at  Lake  Calhoun,  by  Mr.  Stevens,  Mr.  Pres- 
cott,  and  others,  but  the  place  was  offered  by  the 
major  to  Mr.  Pond,  as  the  Indians  desired  his  appoint 
ment.  He  however  declined  it,  but  finally  consented 
to  take  it  temporarily  until  he  could  ascertain  whether 
or  not  his  brother  would  take  it  off  his  hands.  This 
proposition  was  satisfactory  to  the  agent  and  the 
matter  was  so  arranged. 

A  letter  written  about  this  time  will  give  some  idea 
of  the  manner  in  which  this  summer  was  spent.  It 
was  written  by  S.  W.  Pond  to  his  mother :  — 

My  health  is  good  and  I  am  pleasantly  enough  situated  for  such 
a  world  as  this.  I  occupy  the  same  room  that  I  did  last  summer 
and  spend  much  of  my  time  in  it  alone.  I  can  translate  the  easiest 
parts  of  the  Bible  into  the  Sioux,  so  as  to  make  it  intelligible  to 
the  Indians,  and  translate  a  chapter  or  two  almost  every  day. 

I  hold  a  meeting  in  Sioux  on  the  Sabbath.  But  few  attend,  and 
I  do  not  feel  anxious  to  have  many  attend  until  I  can  speak  better 
Sioux  than  I  can  now. 

I  have  been  here  a  long  time  and  have  not  been  the  means  of  the 
conversion  of  one  Indian,  yet  I  am  not  discouraged.  It  is  my 
earnest  desire  and  prayer  to  God  that  he  would  give  me  the  souls 
of  these  heathen  as  seals  of  my  ministry,  yet  my  eternal  welfare 
does  not  depend  upon  it.  That,  I  trust,  is  secured  by  the  promise 


128         TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

of  God.  "  I  know  in  whom  I  have  believed."  I  have  great  hope 
that  I  shall  yet  see  many  of  these  Indians  converted,  but  faithful 
missionaries  in  different  parts  of  the  world  have  spent  their  lives 
without  seeing  any  fruits  of  their  labors,  and  what  am  I  better 
than  they?  If  they  saw  no  good  effects  of  their  labors  while  on 
earth,  they  can  now  look  back  and  see  that  "  their  labors  were  not 
in  vain  in  the  Lord." 

While  the  Dakotas  were  slow  to  accept  moral  and 
spiritual  truths,  there  were  some  other  things  which 
they  learned  of  white  people  with  the  greatest  facility. 
The  young  Indians  were  imitative.  Soon  after  a 
young  married  couple  arrived  at  Lake  Harriet  for  a 
brief  sojourn,  it  was  noticed  that  all  the  young  people 
in  the  vicinity  formed  the  habit  of  greeting  each  other 
with  the  affectionate  query,  "My  dear,  what  time 
is  it?" 


CHAPTER  X. 

WEDDING    FESTIVITIES    AT   LAKE   HARRIET. 

"A  /TINNEAPOLIS  has  a  prehistoric  history  with 
_-LV_J_  which  few  of  her  citizens  are  familiar. 
Scarcely  a  stone's  throw  from  the  Lake  Harriet 
Pavilion,  the  close  observer  may  have  noticed  a  slight 
depression  below  the  general  surface  of  the  ground. 
That  depression  marks  the  site  of  the  Mission  Board 
ing  School,  where,  in  1835,  the  first  attempt  was  made 
to  educate  and  Christianize  Dakota  Indians. 

There,  on  the  evening  of  November  22,  1838,  was 
solemnized  the  first  marriage  of  white  people  in  civi 
lized  form  within  the  present  limits  of  Minneapolis. 
It  was  a  brilliant,  starry  evening,  one  of  Minnesota's 
brightest  and  most  invigorating.  The  sleighing  was 
fine,  and  among  the  guests  were  many  officers  from 
Fort  Snelling  with  their  wives.  Dr.  Emerson  and 
wife,  best  known  as  the  owners  of  Dred  Scott,  the 
subject  of  Judge  Taney's  famous  decision,  were  pres 
ent,  the  doctor  being  at  that  time  post  surgeon  at  the 
fort.  Dred  Scott  himself  was  then  held  as  a  slave 
at  Fort  Snelling.  The  officiating  clergyman  was  the 
Rev.  J.  D.  Stevens,  whose  wife  was  a  sister  of  the 


130         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

bride.  The  bridesmaid  was  the  beautiful  and  accom 
plished  Miss  Cornelia  Stevens,  at  that  time  teacher  in 
the  boarding  school,  who  afterward  became  the  wife 
of  the  talented  Rev.  Daniel  Gavin,  the  Swiss  mission 
ary.  Miss  Stevens  had  been  three  years  connected 
with  the  school  at  Lake  Harriet  and  was  then  nineteen 
years  of  age.  The  groomsman  was  Henry  H.  Sibley, 
destined  in  later  days  to  be  Minnesota's  first  delegate 
in  Congress,  her  first  state  executive,  and  finally,  Gen 
eral  Sibley,  alike  distinguished  in  political,  civil,  and 
military  life. 

The  bride  on  that  occasion  was  Miss  Cordelia 
Eggleston,  whose  amiable  yet  sensitive  nature  poorly 
fitted  her  to  endure  the  toils  and  privations  which  fell 
to  her  lot  as  the  wife  of  a  missionary  to  the  wild 
Dakotas.  After  fourteen  years  of  self-denying  toil 
she  fell  a  martyr  to  the  cause  to  which  she  had 
devoted  her  life.  The  wedding  day  was  also  the 
bride's  birthday.  She  was  just  twenty-three.  The 
bridegroom  was  the  Rev.  S.  W.  Pond,  of  the  Dakota 
Mission. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  wedding  festivities  the 
guests  from  Fort  Snelling  attempted  to  cross  Lake 
Harriet  on  their  return,  but  only  those  who  had  fleet 
horses  succeeded,  the  violent  northwest  wind  compel 
ling  the  return  of  those  less  fortunate.  It  was  a 
romantic  one — that  first  wedding;  and  though  few 


WEDDING  FESTIVITIES.  131 

of  the  modern  accessories  of  a  great  marriage  added 
to  the  attractions  of  the  occasion,  a  more  distinguished 
company  could  not  at  that  time  have  been  assembled 
within  the  limits  of  the  territory.  It  is  true  the  best 
home  the  bridegroom  had  to  offer  was  little  better 
than  an  Indian  tent,  and  his  entire  worldly  wealth 
was  the  two  hundred  dollars  a  year  which  he  expected 
to  receive  from  the  missionary  society,  and  even  that 
was  still  wholly  in  the  future,  yet  it  was  a  happy  occa 
sion  notwithstanding. 

The  tall  bridegroom  and  groomsman,  in  the  vigor 
and  strength  of  young  manhood ;  the  bride  and 
bridesmaid,  just  emerging  from  girlhood,  must  have 
presented  an  attractive  picture  in  the  mission  house 
that  night  at  Lake  Harriet. 

The  "  wedding  hymn  "  was  written  for  the  occasion 
by  Mr.  Pond,  at  the  request  of  the  ladies,  who  could 
find  nothing  that  seemed  to  them  quite  appropriate. 
The  concluding  verse  is  given :  — 

"  Oh,  make  them  faithful  unto  death, 
And  then  may  they  in  glory  meet, 
And  crowns  of  life  from  thee  receive 
To  cast  at  their  Redeemer's  feet." 

The  young  couple  set  up  their  Penates  in  a  small 
upper  room  over  the  schoolroom,  which  was  not  only 
small  but  open,  but  warm  hearts  and  a  determined 
purpose  made  the  little  room  a  happy  home.  Their 


132  TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

housekeeping  arrangements  were  extremely  simple 
and  their  utensils  few.  Their  first  teapot  was  an  old 
oil  can,  carefully  scoured  without  and  cleansed  within, 
and  other  things  were  in  proportion.  The  salary 
allowed  them  by  the  Board  was  not  intended  to  cover 
luxuries,  and  the  actual  necessaries  of  life  are  few  and 
inexpensive.  They  could  dress  and  fare  as  well  as 
their  parishioners  with  a  very  small  outlay. 

November  29,  a  week  after  the  wedding,  Mr.  Pond 
wrote  to  a  friend  in  Connecticut,  giving  some  inter 
esting  facts  about  their  connection  with  the  mission 
work  up  to  that  time.  It  will  be  remembered  they 
had  been  engaged  in  mission  work  about  four  years 
and  a  half  :  — 

My  brother  Gideon,  you  probably  have  heard,  was  married  a  little 
more  than  a  year  ago.  I  believe  that  we  both  have  such  wives  as 
missionaries  ought  to  have.  I  need  not  tell  you  that  neither  of  us 
expected  ever  to  be  married  when  we  came  to  this,  wild  country, 
but  through  the  good  providence  of  God,  without  any  exertions 
of  our  own,  we  have  both  obtained  wTives  where  we  little  expected 
to  find  them.  Had  I  been  married  sooner,  I  suppose  I  should  not 
have  been  able  to  learn  the  Sioux  language  as  fast  as  I  have  done, 
for,  having  no  books  in  the  Indian  language  to  study,  I  have  been 
obliged  to  spend  a  great  deal  of  my  time  with  the  Indians,  in  order 
to  learn  their  language.  If  I  had  been  married,  I  could  not  have 
spent  so  much  of  my  time  with  them  as  I  have  done. 

My  brother  and  I  have  always  had  our  wants  abundantly  sup 
plied,  but  we  have  received  nothing  but  what  we  have  received 
from  our  friends  at  home.  When  Dr.  Williamson  wrote  about  a 
year  ago  to  the  committee  at  Boston  to  have  Gideon  appointed  a 


WEDDING  FESTIVITIES.  133 

missionary,  he  told  them  that  the  station  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  was 
indebted  to  my  brother  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  for  labor, 
and  we  have  done  more  for  this  station  than  he  has  for  that.  With 
a  few  trifling  exceptions,  we  have  always  purchased  our  own 
clothes,  either  with  money  which  we  had  when  we  came,  or  which 
I  had  left  of  that  which  my  friends  in  Washington  gave  me  to  pay 
the  expense  of  my  journey  back. 

I  mention  these  things  not  because  we  are  in  want.  We  might 
receive  more  if  we  chose  to. 

They  made  the  little  chamber  their  home  that 
winter,  and  the  following  spring,  1839,  G.  H.  Pond  and 
wife  with  their  little  Ruth  arrived  at  Lake  Harriet. 
They  came  all  the  way  from  Lac  Qui  Parle  to  Men- 
dota  in  a  canoe,  a  long  journey  of  more  than  two 
hundred  miles,  reaching  the  latter  place  early  in 
April. 

Daniel  Gavin,  who  had  spent  the  previous  winter  at 
Lac  Qui  Parle,  came  with  them,  also  Eagle  Help,  the 
war  prophet  and  medicine  man,  for  whom  G.  H.  Pond 
had  so  diligently  labored. 

On  his  arrival  at  Lake  Harriet,  G.  H.  Pond  entered 
at  once  upon  his  work  as  Indian  farmer,  holding  at 
the  same  time  a  commission  as  missionary  teacher 
without  pay.  His  government  salary  was  six  hundred 
dollars  per  year  and  his  duties  were  varied  and  labori 
ous.  He  had  to  build  storehouses  for  the  Indians  and 
shelter  for  their  cattle  ;  cut  hay  to  keep  the  latter 
through  the  long  cold  winter ;  to  feed  them  in  winter 


134         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

and  herd  them  in  summer.  He  also  had  to  plow  the 
Indian  cornfields,  and  do  such  other  work  as  they 
might  need  done  for  them. 

He  had  to  make  a  team  out  of  unbroken  bullocks 
unaccustomed  to  the  yoke,  and  too  old  to  be  easily 
trained.  Much  of  this  work  he  did  alone,  but  much 
of  it  no  man,  however  energetic,  could  alone  accom 
plish  ;  therefore  much  of  his  salary  went  for  hired 
labor.  He  was  very  skillful  in  the  management  of 
oxen  and  soon  had  a  team  which  he  could  use,  if  no 
one  else  could.  Prior  to  the  treaty,  the  Indian  men 
were  accustomed  to  aid  in  plowing  their  fields,  but 
after  the  treaty  was  made,  not  one  of  them  would 
touch  a  plow.  Most  of  the  farmers  got  along  as 
easily  and  had  as  little  to  do  with  the  Indians  as  pos 
sible,  but  not  so  with  the  farmer  for  the  Lake  Calhoun 
band.  He  contrived  to  give  away  a  large  part  of  his 
salary  for  the  benefit  of  the  Indians,  a  part  of  which 
was  spent  in  printing  books  for  their  use. 

During  this  year  Mr.  Stevens  was  appointed  farmer 
for  the  Wabashaw  band,  and  left  Lake  Harriet,  while 
his  niece,  Cornelia  Stevens,  was  married  to  Mr.  Gavin 
and  removed  to  Red  Wing.  These  events  left  S.  W. 
and  G.  H.  Pond,  with  their  families,  alone  at  Lake 
Harriet. 

About  this  time  the  chiefs  daughter  gave  her  little 
girl  to  Samuel  Pond  to  be  trained  up  as  a  white  girl. 


WEDDING  FESTIVITIES.  135 

She  was  then  about  eleven  years  old,  could  not  speak 
a  word  of  English,  and  seemed  to  prefer  life  in  her 
mother's  tepee  to  the  house  of  the  missionary.  She 
gradually  grew  accustomed  to  civilized  life  and  to 
prefer  the  new  life  to  the  old.  They  called  her  Jane. 
She  became  in  time  an  earnest  Christian  girl,  and 
after  living  in  the  families  first  of  Samuel  and  then 
of  Gideon  Pond  twelve  years,  married  a  white  man 
and  became  a  useful  member  of  the  church  and  of 
society.  Two  of  her  sons  are  prominent  and  wealthy 
bankers  in  a  neighboring  state,  possessing  the  sagac 
ity  of  their  mother's  race,  and  the  thrift  and  business 
prudence  of  their  father's  also.  Probably  few,  if  any, 
of  those  who  daily  transact  business  with  them,  have 
the  faintest  suspicion  that  these  blue-eyed,  brown- 
haired  men  are  grandsons  of  a  full-blooded  Indian 
woman,  and  great-grandsons  of  a  chief  of  the  Lake 
Calhoun  band. 

As  has  been  stated,  the  brothers  were  now  again  at 
Lake  Harriet,  with  apparently  a  bright  future  before 
them,  but  their  work  was  destined  to  be  speedily  in 
terrupted  by  an  unforeseen  occurrence. 

Ever  since  the  treacherous  act  of  Hole-in-the-day 
at  the  Chippewa,  in  the  spring  of  the  preceding 
year,  Eagle  Help  and  his  party  had  sought  revenge, 
but  their  plans  had  thus  far  resulted  in  nothing,  and 
there  was  still  an  unbalanced  credit  of  murders  on  the 


136          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

part  of  the  Ojibways  to  be  adjusted.  It  is  true  the 
Lake  Calhoun  Indians  had  succeeded  in  killing  one 
Ojibway  near  Fort  Snelling  the  previous  summer,  sup 
posing  at  the  time  that  they  were  killing  Hole-in-the- 
day  himself. 

S.  W.  Pond  kept  a  careful  record  of  all  the 
fatal  encounters  between  the  Dakotas  and  their  ene 
mies  beginning  with  the  year  1834.  From  this  record 
the  following  account  of  the  above  affair  is  taken :  — 

"  Hole-in-the-day  made  a  visit  to  Fort  Snelling 
in  company  with  two  or  three  of  his  men.  He  first 
went  to  Patrick  Quinn's,  who  lived  about  a  mile  above 
the  fort  and  whose  wife  was  a  half-breed  Ojibway. 
The  Dakotas  at  Lake  Calhoun  heard  of  his  arrival  and 
started  out  in  a  body  to  kill  him,  but  the  agent,  Talia- 
ferro,  persuaded  them  to  turn  back,  giving  them  per 
mission  to  kill  him  if  they  could  on  his  way  home. 
Two  brothers,  however,  whose  relatives  he  had  killed 
at  the  Chippewa,  concealed  themselves  near  Quinn's 
house  and  in  the  evening,  when  Hole-in-the-day  and 
a  companion  were  passing  from  Quinn's  to  a  neighbor 
ing  house,  shot  one  of  them  supposing  him  to  be  the 
chief,  he  having  previously  exchanged  clothes  or  orna 
ments  with  the  chief. 

"One  of  the  Dakotas  was  badly  wounded.  They 
were  confined  a  while  in  the  fort,  but  were  released 
pn  condition  that  their  friends  should  chastise  them 


WEDDING  FESTIVITIES.  137 

severely  in  the  presence  of  the  garrison,  which  was 
done." 

It  appears  from  the  record  referred  to  that  in  their 
desultory  warfare  the  Dakotas  had  lost  in  the  pre 
ceding  five  years  twenty-six  persons,  while  the  Ojib- 
ways  had  lost  but  eight.  This  fact  accounts  in  some 
measure  for  the  state  of  mind  among  the  Sioux  which 
led  them  to  plan  and  execute  the  bloody  massacre  of 
Rum  River,  so  called  because  it  occurred  near  that 
stream. 

It  is  said  that  the  natives  sometimes  called  this 
stream  Spirit  River,  and  the  early  settlers,  in  whose 
minds  the  word  spirits  easily  suggested  something  in 
the  drinking  line,  achieved  as  they  supposed  a  literal 
translation  in  the  well-known  name,  Rum  River. 

The  Lake  Calhoun  band  had  been  a  very  warlike 
one  before  the  building  of  the  fort,  and  one  even 
ing  in  March,  1836,  the  chief,  Man-of-the-sky,  gave 
G.  H.  Pond  some  account  of  his  war  record  and  the 
history  of  his  band. 

It  was  his  activity  and  resolution  in  war  that  had 
raised  him  to  the  rank  of  chief.  His  father  and  uncle 
had  also  been  great  warriors,  the  one  killing  fifteen, 
the  other  seventeen  of  the  enemy.  The  uncle  had 
himself  fallen  in  battle,  and  this  event  aroused  the 
fiendish  passions  of  the  young  man,  who  then  deter 
mined  on  revenge  or  death.  He  braced  himself  for 


138         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

murder  and  savage  cruelty,  knowing  that  success 
would  not  only  gratify  his  love  of  revenge  but  also 
raise  him  to  honor.  He  added  that  he  still  wished 
to  die  in  battle. 

He  said  that  at  one  time  eleven  warriors  fought  with 
one  hundred  Ojibways  and  killed  a  number  without 
having  one  wounded.  He  laid  his  hand  upon  his 
mouth,  a  mark  of  wonder,  and  said,  "  There  the 
Great  Spirit  fought  for  us."  He  spoke  of  their  cruel 
ties  and  of  once  bringing  home  a  boy  and  burning  him 
alive,  saying  they  felt  no  pity  in  time  of  war.  "  Our 
hearts,"  he  said,  "are  strong  and  such  things  cannot 
move  us."  At  another  time  they  took  a  child  alive 
and  left  him  on  the  ice  to  perish.  He  said  he  had 
killed  six  Ojibways  and  left  fighting  when  he  was 
twenty-five,  at  the  time  Fort  Snelling  was  built,  and 
added,  "  Had  it  not  been  for  that  I  should  have 
killed  many  more,  or  have  been  myself  killed  ere 
this." 

And  these  are  the  confessions  of  one  of  the  most 
intelligent,  thoughtful,  and  humane  of  the  Dakotas 
of  that  day ;  the  great  grandfather  of  an  intelligent, 
cultivated,  and  devoted  clergyman  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

THE   MASSACRE    OF  RUM   RIVER  AND   WHAT   FOLLOWED. 

THE  massacre  of  O  jib  ways  by  the  Sioux,  which 
occurred  July  3,  1839,  on  the  Rum  River  and 
simultaneously  on  the  St.  Croix,  is  without  a  parallel 
in  authentic  annals  of  intertribal  warfare  occurring 
within  the  boundaries  of  the  present  state  of  Minne 
sota.  There  are  traditional  accounts  of  more  sangui 
nary  struggles  but  they  are  vague  and  unreliable.  The 
number  of  the  slain  was  only  great  in  comparison  with 
the  numbers  of  the  bands  engaged,  but  was  quite 
sufficient  to  create  cause  for  wailing  in  nearly  every 
household  of  the  Ojibways,  and  in  very  many  of  the 
Sioux  households. 

When  taken  in  connection  with  the  causes  which  led 
to  it  and  the  results  which  followed  it,  its  history  forms 
one  of  the  most  interesting  chapters  in  the  annals  of 
savage  warfare,  and  few  will  question  the  truth  of  the 
assertion  that  hand-to-hand  conflicts  are  more  thrilling 
in  their  details  than  modern  long-distance  sharp- 
shooting,  even  though  the  latter  may  be  the  more 
scientific  mode  of  killing  men. 

Among  the  prominent  Indians  of  the  Lake  Calhoun 

139 


140          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

band  was  a  distinguished  warrior  and  medicine  man, 
a  man  of  energy  and  ambition,  who  held  a  prominent 
and  influential  place  in  the  councils  of  his  village. 
His  name  was  Zitkadan-Duta  (Red-Bird).  He  had 
never  favored  the  missionary  work  of  the  Ponds.  It 
did  not  require  prophetic  vision,  such  as  he  claimed  to 
possess,  but  mere  common  foresight,  to  predict  that 
as  their  influence  increased  his  influence  would  be 
proportionately  diminished. 

He  had  tested  their  courage  and  had  not  found 
them  lacking.  Years  before,  as  the  brothers  were 
walking  Indian  file  along  a  narrow  path  by  the  lake 
shore,  they  met  Red-Bird.  Some  one  must  turn  out. 
After  passing  the  older  brother,  who  was  a  few  steps 
in  advance,  Red-Bird  assumed  a  haughty  expression 
and  marched  resolutely  forward.  At  a  word  of  warn 
ing,  Gideon  faced  the  chief,  with  a  similar  expression 
on  his  face  and  the  forehead  of  the  tall  Indian  and 
that  of  the  tall  white  man  came  together  in  violent 
concussion.  This  incident,  in  itself  a  trifling  one, 
meant  much  to  the  haughty  chief,  although  at  the  time 
he  turned  it  off  with  a  laugh.  He  was  never  after 
ward  very  friendly  to  either  of  the  brothers,  although 
he  always  treated  them  with  respect. 

He  was  the  prominent  leader  in  the  battle  of  July  3. 

Late  in  June,  several  bands  of  Ojibways,  men, 
women,  and  children,  met  at  Fort  Snelling  to  transact 


THE  MAS 8 ACRE  OF  RUM  RIVER.          141 

business  with  Major  Taliaferro,  the  agent.  Hole-in- 
the-day  and  his  people  came  down  the  Mississippi  in 
canoes  ;  the  Mille  Lacs  came  by  land  ;  others  came  by 
water  down  the  St.  Croix  and  up  the  Mississippi. 
They  all  left  Fort  Snelling  for  home  about  the  same 
time,  each  party  returning  home  by  the  same  route  it 
came. 

The  Mille  Lacs  and  Hole-in-the-day's  band  en 
camped  at  St.  Anthony  Falls,  and  some  of  the  Da- 
kotas  who  paid  them  a  visit  complained  that  they 
were  not  well  treated  by  the  Ojibways.  They  went 
with  their  complaints  to  the  agent,  who  advised  them 
not  to  molest  the  Ojibways  unless  they  killed  some  of 
their  number,  in  which  event  he  gave  them  leave  to 
retaliate. 

The  Ojibways  departed  on  their  return  journey  on 
the  first  day  of  July,  but  as  the  event  proved,  two 
Ojibways  remained  behind  who  belonged  to  Hole-in- 
the-day's  band,  and  were  said  to  be  sons  or  step-sons 
of  the  Ojibway  who  had  been  killed  near  Patrick 
Quinn's  the  year  before. 

Soon  after  daylight  on  the  morning  of  the  second, 
Rupacoka-Maza,  a  son-in-law  of  Cloud-Man  the  chief, 
left  the  Indian  village  at  Lake  Calhoun  to  hunt  pigeons 
in  a  grove  south  of  Lake  Harriet.  He  was  accom 
panied  by  a  young  lad  and  carried  two  guns,  one  for 
himself,  another  for  the  boy.  Their  path  lay  along 


142          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

the  east  side  of  Lake  Harriet  and  thence  to  the  grove. 
On  the  southeast  side  of  the  lake  the  Ojibways  lay 
in  ambush,  and  as  the  hunter  passed  they  shot  him. 

The  lad,  not  being  tall  enough  to  be  seen  above  the 
weeds  or  brush  that  bordered  the  path,  escaped  unob 
served  and  ran  to  the  camp,  and  in  a  very  few  minutes 
the  occurrence  was  known  at  the  mission  and  the 
Pond  brothers  reached  the  murdered  man  about  as 
soon  as  the  Indians  did. 

The  events  that  followed  were  described  many  years 
later  by  G-.  H.  Pond  in  the  following  graphic  lan 
guage  :  — 

"  On  a  July  day  in  1839,  at  Lake  Harriet,  there  was 
a  cluster  of  summer  huts  constructed  of  small  poles 
and  barks  of  trees,  the  summer  home  of  four  or  five 
hundred  souls,  surrounded  by  their  gardens  of  corn 
and  squashes.  It  was  an  Indian  village.  The  five 
hundred  had  swarmed  out  into  and  around  the  shores 
of  the  lakes.  Men,  women,  and  children  were  all  en 
gaged  in  hunting,  chopping,  fishing,  swimming,  play 
ing,  singing,  yelling,  whooping,  and  wailing.  The  air 
was  full  of  all  sorts  of  savage  sounds,  frightful  to  one 
unaccustomed  to  them.  The  clamor  and  clatter  on 
all  sides  made  me  feel  that  I  was  in  the  midst  of 
barbarism,  and  I  was. 

"  Suddenly,  like  a  peal  of  thunder  when  no  cloud  is 
visible,  here,  there,  everywhere,  awoke  the  startling 


THE  MASSACRE  OF  SUM  EIVER.          143 

alarm  whoop,  '  Hoo-hoo-hoo  ! '  Blankets  were  thrown 
in  the  air.  Men,  women,  children,  ran  —  they  ran  for 
life.  Terror  sat  on  every  face.  Mothers  grasped 
their  little  ones.  All  around  was  crying,  wailing, 
shrieking,  storming,  scolding.  Men  vowed  vengeance, 
whooped  defiance,  and  dropped  bullets  into  their  gun- 
barrels.  The  excitement  was  intense  and  universal. 
'  The  Chippewas !  The  Chippewas  have  surrounded 
us  !  We  shall  all  be  butchered  !  Rupacoka-Maza  is 
killed ! ' 

"Ah,  yes!  just  across  there  on  the  other  bank  of 
Lake  Harriet  —  there  he  lies  all  bloody.  The  soul  is 
gone  from  the  body,  escaping  through  that  bullet  hole  ; 
the  scalp  is  torn  from  the  head. 

"  A  crowd  has  gathered,  and  every  heart  is  hot  with 
wrath.  Ah,  me  !  What  wailing  !  What  imprecation  ! 
The  dead  one  is  the  son-in-law  of  the  chief,  and 
nephew  to  the  medicine  man,  Red-Bird.  Every  war 
rior,  young  and  old,  utters  his  determined  vow  of 
vengeance  as  Red-Bird  stoops  to  press  his  lips  on  the 
yet  warm,  bleeding  corpse,  cursing  the  enemy  in  the 
name  of  the  gods. 

"  Now  see  the  runners  scud  in  all  directions  !  In 
an  hour  or  two  the  warriors  begin  to  arrive,  painted, 
moccasined,  victualed,  and  armed  for  the  warpath. 
Indian  warriors  are  all  minutemen. 

"Come  with   me   to   St.    Anthony  Fallsr.     Here  is 


144         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

the  unspoiled  river,  rushing  unhindered  down  its  rocky 
bed  —  naught  else.  We  will  stand  on  the  rocky  bluff. 
Now  come  the  avengers  of  blood.  They  come  from 
Shakopee,  from  Eaglehead,  from  Goodroad,  from  Bad- 
hail,  and  from  Black-dog.  All  the  hot  afternoon  of 
this  July  day  they  cross  and  recross  their  canoes  over 
the  bosom  of  the  river  at  the  head  of  the  island. 

"The  sun  is  just  ready  to  sink  as  we  look  at  the 
long  row  of  warriors  seated  on  the  east  bank.  That 
tall  form,  dressed  not  much  unlike  Adam  before  the 
fall,  save  war  paint,  at  the  head  of  the  line,  is  Red- 
Bird.  One  long  wail  goes  up  from  three  or  four  hun 
dred  throats,  as  Red-Bird  utters  his  imprecatory  prayer 
to  the  gods.  He  presents  to  them  the  pipe  of  war, 
and  it  goes  down  the  ranks,  as  he  follows  it,  lay'**^, 
his  hands  on  the  head  of  each,  binding  him  by  all  that 
is  sacred  in  human  relationships  and  in  religion,  to 
strike  for  the  gods  and  for  Red-Bird. 

"The  next  evening  the  dusky  runners  begin  to 
arrive  at  Lake  Calhoun,  from  the  battle  ground  at 
Rum  River.  Red-Bird  is  killed  ;  his  son  is  killed ; 
the  Chippewas  are  nearly  all  killed.  Seventy  scalps 
dangle  from  the  poles  in  the  center  of  the  village 
close  by  the  tepee  of  the  father-in-law  of  Philander 
Prescott.  The  scalp  dance  lasted  for  a  month.  It 
seemed  as  if  hell  had  emptied  itself  here." 

The   pursuing  party  had    overtaken   the   Ojibways 


THE  MASSACRE  OF  BUM  EIVEE.         145 

before  daylight  in  the  morning,  but  had  remained 
in  concealment  until  the  hunters  left  the  camp  for 
the  day,  and  had  then  attacked  the  poorly  defended 
women  and  children.  The  attack  was  sudden,  im 
petuous,  and  unexpected  as  the  famous  attack  of  the 
Nervii  upon  Caesar's  disordered  camp.  The  women 
raised  their  hands  and  looked  back  for  a  moment  in 
dazed  astonishment,  then  turned  and  fled.  The  Da- 
kotas  were  worn  out  by  their  forced  march  of  the  day 
and  night  preceding,  and  those  of  their  enemies  who 
got  off  the  field  alive  were  not  pursued. 

Red-Bird's  son,  but  a  lad  in  years,  was  crying 
beside  the  dead  body  of  Rupacoka-Maza  on  that  sec 
ond  of  July.  His  father  sneeringly  said  to  him, 
"What  are  you  crying  for?  Don't  you  know  which 
way  the  enemy  has  gone?"  Red-Bird  was  killed  by 
a  man  who  had  been  shot  down.  His  son,  as  he  was 
being  carried  from  the  field  with  his  entrails  pro 
truding  from  a  ghastly  wound,  said  to  those  who  were 
carrying  him,  "Where  is  my  father?  I  want  him  to 
see  this.  I  suppose  it  is  what  he  wanted."  On  being 
told  that  his  father  was  dead,  he  said  nothing  more, 
and  soon  died. 

Owanca-duta,  then  in  battle  for  the  first  time,  was 
asked  by  Mr.  Pond  how  he  felt  about  the  slaughter 
of  the  women  and  children.  He  replied  that  in  the 
excitement  of  the  attack  he  enjoyed  the  work,  but  it 


146          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

made  him  feel  bad  to  come  back  among  the  bodies  of 
the  slain.  After  the  battle  a  forced  retreat  must  be 
made  to  escape  the  vengeance  of  the  0  jib  way  hunters. 
Shakpe,  chief  of  the  Prairieville  band,  who  had  many 
wounded,  found  himself  likely  to  be  left  in  the  rear. 
He  was  a  noted  orator,  and  made  a  speech  in  this 
emergency  which  produced  a  profound  impression. 
Among  other  things,  he  said:  "You  have  poured 
blood  upon  me,  and  now  you  run  away  and  leave  me." 

This  bloody  slaughter  was  not  all.  The  Kaposia, 
Little  Crow's  band,  pursued  the  party  which  returned 
home  by  way  of  the  Mississippi  and  St.  Croix  Rivers 
and  overtook  them  in  drunken  revel,  they  having  taken 
a  supply  of  "  mini  wakan"  with  them.  The  Dakotas 
killed  about  twenty-five  of  the  enemy.  Those  who 
survived  the  first  attack  were  sobered  by  their  danger 
and  repulsed  the  Sioux,  pursuing  them  in  their  retreat 
and  killing  a  number  of  them.  In  these  two  en 
counters  the  Dakotas  killed  about  ninety-five,  mostly 
women  and  children,  and  lost  seventeen,  all  fighting 
men. 

After  these  events  the  Dakotas  were  in  constant 
dread  of  a  warlike  visit  from  the  enraged  O  jib  ways. 

The  little  cabin  at  Lake  Calhoun  was  torn  down 
to  obtain  material  for  breastworks  for  the  Indians. 
They  were  obliged  to  remain  at  the  lake  until  their 
corn  could  be  gathered,  which  they  made  all  haste  to 


THE  MAS 8 ACRE   OF  RUM  RIVER.         147 

do.  It  appears  from  G-.  H.  Pond's  journal  that  the 
Indians  at  Lake  Calhoun  raised  that  year  thirteen 
hundred  bushels,  of  which  Chief  Drifter's  field  pro 
duced  four  hundred  and  forty  bushels.  As  soon  as 
the  corn  was  gathered,  the  Lake  Calhoun  band  left 
their  village  by  the  lake  to  return  no  more,  for  while 
they  would  no  doubt  in  time  have  returned,  if  left  to 
themselves,  Major  Plympton  had  determined  on  their 
removal.  The  Ponds  remained  at  the  Lake  Harriet 
Mission  House  until  May,  1840,  as  it  was  impossible 
to  remove  sooner,  all  preparations  for  wintering  the 
Indian  stock  having  been  already  made.  This  win 
ter  S.  W.  Pond  completed  a  small  grammar  of  the 
Dakota,  and  also  finished  arranging  and  copying  his 
Dakota  dictionary  once  more,  containing  at  that  time, 
as  stated  in  a  letter  of  that  date,  about  three  thousand 
words. 

A  record  of  the  expenses  of  Lake  Harriet  Mission 
lies  before  me,  from  which  it  appears  that  the  entire 
expenditure  of  the  year  closing  July  31,  1840,  was 
$276.  One  of  the  items,  that  of  postage,  appears 
excessive  until  we  recall  the  fact  that  each  letter  cost 
the  recipient  twenty-five  cents  in  those  days.  How 
fortunate  that  they  had  only  monthly  mails  ! 

The  expense  account  for  the  following  year  foots 
up  $172.62.  This  includes  one  Greek  lexicon,  also 
another  item  for  books  bought  of  Franklin  Steele,  $14. 


148         TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  next  year  includes  an  item  of  traveling  ex 
penses  to  Lac  Qui  Parle  and  the  total  is  $130.83,  in 
clusive  of  house  rent  $50,  and  special  expense  con 
nected  with  the  birth  of  the  Weenona  of  the  family. 

It  has  been  said  in  recent  publications  that  the 
results  of  these  early  Indian  missions  were  meager 
when  compared  with  the  large  sums  expended  in 
maintaining  them.  The  above  specimen  figures  rep 
resent  the  entire  expense  to  the  Society,  and  are  given 
as  some  indication  of  the  amount  of  money  so  con 
sumed  by  the  Lake  Harriet  Mission  ;  and  it  is  but  fair 
to  add  that  a  part  of  this  expenditure  was  incurred  in 
clothing  and  feeding  a  little  Indian  girl,  who  has  re 
paid  many  times  over  all  the  money  which  was  ever 
expended  on  this  mission. 

In  May,  1840,  Samuel  and  Gideon  Pond  removed 
to  a  stone  house  known  as  the  "  Baker  House"  near 
Camp  Cold  Water,  a  short  distance  above  Fort  Snell- 
ing.  This  house  they  rented  for  one  year,  living  in 
one  half  of  it,  while  Mr.  Gavin  and  Mr.  Denton,  the 
Swiss  missionaries,  with  their  families,  occupied  the 
other  half. 

Prior  to  this  time  Major  Taliaferro  had  resigned  his 
office  as  Indian  agent  and  was  succeeded  by  Colonel 
Bruce.  In  his  letter  of  resignation  he  stated,  among 
other  things,  that  the  Fur  Company  was  too  strong  for 
him  and  too  strong  for  the  government.  He  claimed 


THE  MASSACRE   OF  HUM  RIVER.         149 

the  company  thwarted  his  plans  for  the  improvement 
of  the  condition  of  the  Indians. 

He  had  always  been  a  firm  friend  of  the  brothers 
and  while  his  example  had  been  in  some  things  harm 
ful  to  the  Indians,  he  had  been  so  uniformly  kind 
and  considerate  where  they  were  concerned,  that  they 
parted  from  him  with  regret  and  felt  that  "  they  better 
could  have  spared  a  better  man." 

Major  Plympton  was  now  in  command  at  Fort 
Snelling. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

MURDER   OF    CHIEF    DRIFTER. 

IN  the  year  1834,  when  the  Ponds  first  built  among 
them,  the  Indians  of  the  Lake  Calhoun  band 
were  united,  acknowledging  one  chief,  Cloud-Man,  as 
already  stated.  In  consequence  of  these  brothers 
locating  and  building  at  their  village,  many  from 
other  villages  came  and  located  at  the  lake.  Among 
others  was  an  old  man  who  claimed  to  be  chief  and 
had  quite  a  following  of  Indians  who  came  with  him. 

His  name  was  Kahboka  (one  who  drifts,  or  floats), 
and  between  these  rival  chiefs,  Cloud-Man  and  Drifter, 
there  was  no  great  degree  of  cordiality.  When  the 
bands  removed  from  Lake  Calhoun  the  two  factions 
separated,  the  party  which  followed  Kahboka  encamp 
ing  nearer  the  fort  than  Cloud-Man's  party. 

Since  Major  Plympton  had  decided  on  the  removal 
of  the  Indians,  it  was  necessary  that  a  new  location 
should  be  selected.  Colonel  Bruce  and  Major  Plymp 
ton,  after  looking  the  ground  over,  fixed  on  a  site 
near  where  Hamilton  is  now  located,  not  far  from 
the  mouth  of  Credit  River  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Minnesota.  The  agent  instructed  G.  H.  Pond  to 

150 


MURDER   OF  CHIEF  DRIFTER.  151 

plow  land  there  for  the  Indian  fields.  The  Pond 
brothers  found  the  location  selected  very  unsatis 
factory,  and  the  Indians  of  Eagle  Head's  band 
strongly  objected  to  its  being  occupied  by  the  lower 
Indians.  Since,  however,  Major  Plympton's  word 
was  law,  they  prepared  to  remove.  They  tore  down 
their  houses  at  Lake  Harriet,  moved  the  lumber  to 
the  mouth  of  the  Minnesota,  drew  the  wagon  through 
the  river  with  a  long  rawhide  rope,  and  continued  on 
their  way  to  Credit  River.  The  major  finally  con 
sented  to  allow  the  Indians  to  plant  that  year,  six 
miles  west  of  Fort  Snelling  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Minnesota.  Pleased  with  this  partial  concession, 
Gideon  Pond  commenced  plowing  there  for  Cloud- 
Man's  party.  Kahboka's  party,  offended  because 
their  fields  were  not  plowed  first,  went  up  in  force 
and  drove  away  the  oxen,  at  the  instigation,  it  was 
supposed,  of  Scott  Campbell.  Mr.  Pond,  divining 
their  purpose,  hastily  unyoked  the  oxen  so  that  they 
got  nothing  but  the  team. 

Major  Plympton  promptly  sent  a  message  to  the 
belligerent  Indians  by  Scott  Campbell,  that  the  oxen 
must  be  immediately  driven  back,  and  any  unauthor 
ized  person  who  attempted  to  plow  with  them  would 
be  confined  in  the  guardhouse.  The  oxen  were 
quickly  driven  back  and  the  plowing  for  Cloud-Man's 
party  completed.  Mr.  Pond  then,  with  the  aid  of 


152          TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

the  Indians,  crossed  the  river  and  a  swamp  at  Oak 
Grove  and  went  back  to  Camp  Cold  Water.  Kah- 
boka's  party  dug  up  their  fields  with  hoes  that  year, 
but  the  lesson  did  them  good  and  was  not  forgotten, 
They  were  more  tractable  and  less  aggressive  ever 
after. 

That  year  and  the  following  were  spent  by  S.  W. 
Pond  and  Mr.  Gavin  in  frequent  excursions  to  the 
Indian  villages  to  preach,  and  in  perfecting  their 
knowledge  of  the  language. 

In  April,  1841,  Kahboka  and  his  son  were  shot  by 
the  Ojibways  in  ambush  between  Fort  Snelling  and 
Camp  Cold  Water.  Samuel  Pond,  having  heard  the 
shots,  was  almost  immediately  on  the  ground,  and 
found  the  son  just  expiring  and  the  chief  severely, 
though  it  was  thought  not  fatally,  wounded.  The 
chief,  who  was  wounded  in  one  of  his  legs,  was 
removed  to  comfortable  quarters  and  received  care 
ful  treatment  from  Dr.  Turner,  post  surgeon.  He 
seemed  to  improve  for  a  few  days  and  was  thought 
to  be  in  a  fair  way  to  recover.  Some  days  after  the 
shooting,  Samuel  Pond  was  sitting  with  him  talking 
of  the  occurrence,  and  in  the  course  of  the  conver 
sation  carelessly  laid  his  hand  on  the  wounded  limb. 
The  chief  noticed  the  movement  and  said  in  a  tone 
of  alarm,  "  Did  you  touch  me?  I  did  not  feel  it." 
Mr.  Pond  again  laid  his  hand  on  the  wounded  member 


MURDER   OF  CHIEF  DRIFTER.  153 

and  it  was  found  to  be  destitute  of  feeling,  already 
growing  cold  in  death.  Kahboka,  the  Drifter,  shortly 
afterward  drifted  out  into  the  wide  ocean  of  eternity. 

About  this  time  the  branch  of  the  Dakota  Mission 
located  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  recommended  that  a  mission 
station  be  formed  at  Lake  Traverse  and  that  the 
Messrs.  Pond  be  transferred  to  that  point.  Dr. 
Green  wrote  them  to  that  effect,  assuming  that  they 
would  at  once  remove  thither.  This  they  did  not 
wish  to  do.  Fearing  no  danger  for  themselves,  they 
did  not  think  the  prospect  of  successful  work  at  that 
point  sufficiently  encouraging  to  justify  them  in  re 
moving  their  families  to  that  remote  and  lawless 
region. 

The  mission  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  encountered  much 
opposition  and  had  many  horses  and  cattle  killed. 
Mr.  Huggins,  in  one  of  his  reports,  stated  that  more 
than  fifty  head  of  stock  belonging  to  the  mission  had 
been  killed  at  that  station  alone.  At  Lake  Traverse 
affairs  would  doubtless  have  been  much  worse  since 
the  mission  would  not  have  enjoyed  the  powerful 
protection  and  patronage  of  Mr.  Renville,  the  most 
influential  man  in  all  that  region,  and  a  member  of 
Dr.  Williamson's  church.  The  Indians  at  Lake  Trav 
erse  were  peculiarly  quarrelsome  and  disorderly,  so 
much  so  that  they  wounded  and  drove  away  Joseph 
B.  Brown,  and  troops  were  sent  there  to  restore  order 


154         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

among  the  turbulent  savages.  For  these  reasons  they 
refused  to  go  and  the  move  was  not  insisted  on.  If 
it  had  been,  they  would  have  withdrawn  from  the 
mission  but  not  from  the  work  of  preaching  the 
gospel  to  the  Dakotas. 

About  this  time,  a  few  liquor  sellers  commenced 
operations  at  Pig's  Eye,  their  principal  business  being 
that  of  retailing  liquor  to  the  Indians,  who  soon 
formed  a  taste  for  it.  This  was  the  commencement 
of  St.  Paul.  Samuel  Pond  and  Mr.  Gavin  staked  out 
claims  on  the  site  of  the  future  city  but  took  no 
further  steps  to  hold  them. 

A  certain  humorous  writer,  better  known  for  other 
literary  qualities  than  for  historical  accuracy,  states 
that  the  whiskey  men  came  first  to  this  territory  — 
afterward  the  spiritual  teachers  —  and  inserts  in  his 
book  a  laughable  caricature  to  illustrate  his  theory. 
While  this  order  of  settlement  may  have  prevailed 
to  a  certain  extent  in  some  sections,  it  certainly  did 
not  prevail  at  Fort  Snelling  and  other  important  points 
in  this  section,  including  Minneapolis.  The  ground 
had  been  preempted  in  the  name  of  Christ  and  the 
Church  long  prior  to  the  arrival  of  Satan's  advance 
agents  —  the  saloon  men. 

A  much  larger  proportion  of  the  actual  pioneers  of 
this  region  were  distinctively  religious  men  than  can 
often  be  found  in  new  settlements.  The  honorable 


MURDER   OF  CHIEF  DRIFTER.  155 

names  of  Major  Gustavus  Loomis  and  his  lamented 
son-in-law,  Lieutenant  Ogden,  Eugene  Gauss,  and 
H.  H.  Sibley,  and  later,  Lieutenant,  now  General 
R.  W.  Johnson  will  be  readily  recalled  as  the  names 
of  military  men  who  were  also  professed  soldiers  of 
the  cross. 

The  house  of  Colonel  Stevens,  the  patriarch  of 
Minneapolis,  was  the  first  chapel  on  the  west  side  of 
the  Mississippi  at  the  Falls,  and  many  of  Minneapolis' 
earliest  settlers  gathered  there  to  hear  the  message  of 
the  gospel  from  the  lips  of  G.  H.  Pond. 

In  the  spring  of  1842,  Mr.  Riggs,  who  had  been 
among  the  Indians  nearly  five  years,  planned  to  go 
east  with  his  family  and  spend  a  year  visiting  in  Ohio 
and  elsewhere,  and  it  was  arranged  that  S.  W.  Pond 
should  go  to  Lac  Qui  Parle  and  take  his  place  at 
that  station.  Mr.  Riggs  came  down  the  Minnesota  in 
a  boat  about  the  first  of  May,  and  the  contract  with 
the  owner  required  that  the  boat  should  be  returned  to 
the  Traverse  by  a  certain  date  in  June. 

The  trip  east,  undertaken  at  this  time  by  Mr.  Riggs 
and  family,  was  not  altogether  in  pursuit  of  rest  and 
recreation.  He  was  also  to  superintend  the  printing 
of  some  books  in  Dakota.  Much  of  the  two  preced 
ing  years  had  been  spent,  both  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  and 
the  "  Baker  House  "  in  translating  and  kindred  work. 
Mr.  Gavin,  Samuel  and  Gideon  Pond  took  down  in 


156          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Dakota  a  series  of  Indian  legendary  tales,  as  they 
were  dictated  by  Jack  Frasier,  a  half-breed,  some  of 
which  are  interesting  and  historically  valuable.  One 
of  these  Dakota  legends,  the  most  interesting  perhaps, 
S.  W.  Pond  put  into  English  verse  about  this  time, 
the  well-known  story  of  Anpetu-sapawin.1 

Translations  of  Matthew's  Gospel,  by  S.  W.  Pond, 
and  of  Luke's  Gospel,  by  G.  H.  Pond,  were  prepared 
for  the  press  and  were  revised  with  Mr.  Alexander 
Faribault's  assistance. 

In  1842,  a  Second  Reader,  consisting  of  Bible  stories 
translated  and  prepared  for  publication  by  Samuel 
Pond,  was  printed,  and  also  the  Book  of  Genesis 
translated  by  Dr.  Williamson,  a  number  of  the  Psalms, 
by  Mr.  Riggs  and  Mr.  Renville,  the  Gospel  of  Luke, 
by  G.  H.  Pond,  and  John's  Gospel,  by  Mr.  Renville. 

Of  course  Mr.  Renville  was  aided  in  his  literary 
work  by  others  more  scholarly  than  he,  since  it  was 
well  understood  that  he  was  as  ignorant  of  the  art  of 
writing,  and  reading  also,  as  William  of  Deloraine2  is 
said  to  have  been. 

Samuel  Pond  withheld  his  translation  of  Matthew, 
believing  that  the  number  of  readers  among  the  Da- 
kotas  was  not  at  that  time  large  enough  to  justify 
so  large  an  expenditure  in  printing  books  which  must 
necessarily  prove  in  some  respects  defective,  and 
1  See  Appendix.  2  Lay  of  the  Last  Minstrel. 


MUEDEE   OF  CHIEF  DEIFTEE.  157 

which  revision  would  improve.  The  manuscript  was, 
however,  used  to  some  extent,  since  Dr.  Williamson 
said  he  found  the  Indians  understood  it  better  than 
other  translations. 

In  the  later  editions  the  name  of  G.  H.  Pond  was 
omitted  in  connection  with  the  translation  of  Luke, 
though  perhaps  no  great  change  was  made  in  the  text. 

The  work  of  translating,  during  the  earlier  years  of 
the  "Dakota  Mission,  was  always  somewhat  in  advance 
of  the  demand  for  literature,  as  is  apt  to  be  the  case 
in  difficult  fields  where  few  converts  are  made.  But 
considering  how  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  a  demand 
for  books  finally  developed,  perhaps  this  premature 
preparation  was  fortunate  rather  than  otherwise. 
There  was  always,  among  the  Dakotas,  more  demand 
for  hymns  than  for  any  other  class  of  literature,  and 
most  of  the  missionaries  composed  or  translated  hymns 
for  their  use.  Mr.  Joseph  Renville  composed  the 
hymns  earliest  used,  and  some  of  the  hymns  earliest 
written  are  still  favorites  in  all  the  churches.  Dakotas 
love  to  sing,  and  the  substitution  of  the  songs  of  Zion 
for  the  war  songs  in  which  their  souls  once  delighted 
is  one  of  the  most  striking  marks  of  their  upward 
progress. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  Dakota  Mission  was 
an  important  occasion,  and  especially  appreciated  by 
the  younger  members  of  the  mission  families  or  such 


158          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

of  them  as  were  privileged  to  attend.  It  meant  a 
long  journey  in  a  delightful  season  of  the  year  by 
team  or  more  often  by  canoe.  While  the  older  people 
gravely  discussed  toils  and  triumphs  past  and  to 
come,  and  planned  for  the  Master's  work,  the  young 
people  improved  the  golden  hours,  which  came  to  the 
most  favored  but  once  a  year  and  usually  much  more 
rarely.  When  we  have  few  friends  those  few  are  the 
more  highly  prized. 

The  annual  meeting  of  1841  was  held  at  Lac  Qui 
Parle,  and  Samuel  Pond  attended  while  Mrs.  Pond 
remained  at  home.  She  wrote  to  him  during  his 
absence,  and  since  this  letter  gives  some  idea  of  the 
spirit  which  characterized  these  self-sacrificing  women, 
an  extract  is  here  inserted  :  — 

I  am  glad  of  an  opportunity  to  send  you  a  few  lines  as  an  ex 
pression  of  my  continued  affection  for  you,  and  to  tell  you  that  I 
am  looking  forward,  somewhat  impatiently  I  fear,  for  your  return ; 
yet  much  as  I  wish  to  see  you,  I  believe  I  would  not  call  you  away 
from  duty.  It  is  always  pleasant  to  me  to  think  that  you  are  about 
our  Master's  business — that  you  are  engaged  in  a  good  cause. 

You  are  probably  now  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  and  favored  with  an  op 
portunity  of  uniting  with  the  brethren  and  sisters  there  in  their 
Sabbath  exercises,  which  I  doubt  not  will  be  refreshing  to  your 
spirits,  and  if  you  are  permitted  to  see  a  congregation  of  Indians 
assembled  to  hear  the  truth,  I  trust  it  will  serve  to  encourage  your 
hope  and  strengthen  your  faith. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

A   YEAR   AT    LAC    QUI    PARLE. 

AS  before  stated  the  boat  engaged  by  Mr.  Riggs 
-£^V.  had  to  be  returned  to  the  Traverse  by  about 
the  first' of  June.  Mrs.  Pond's  little  daughter  Jen- 
nette  was  born  May  6  and  was  therefore  about  three 
weeks  old  at  that  time.  Dr.  Williamson  expressed  it 
as  his  opinion  that  it  would  be  perfectly  safe  to  under 
take  the  journey  so  far  as  the  babe  was  concerned,  but 
not  entirely  safe  for  the  mother.  Dr.  Turner,  on  the 
other  hand,  said  he  thought  that  the  mother  would  en 
dure  the  journey,  but  it  would  probably  kill  the  infant. 

Since  it  was  a  case  of  necessity,  Mr.  Pond  put  in 
the  boat  a  little  box  which  he  thought  would  do  for  a 
coffin  if  the  little  babe  had  to  be  buried  by  the  way, 
and  undertook  the  long  and  tedious  journey.  That 
journey  was  one  of  peculiar  anxiety  to  the  young 
mother,  whose  little  babe  faded  day  by  day  before 
her  eyes.  Only  those  who  have  passed  through  a  like 
experience  can  realize  the  burden  of  anxiety  and 
apprehension  which  rested  upon  her  in  her  inexperi 
ence  and  extremity.  She  could  do  little  for  her  child 
but  pray. 

159 


160          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  vernal  beauty  of  the  Minnesota,  which  she  then 
saw  for  the  first  time,  with  its  wealth  of  foliage  and 
rich  variety  of  blossoms,  would  in  ordinary  circum 
stances  have  been  greatly  enjoyed,  but  in  the  shadow 
of  a  threatened  affliction  like  this  one  the  beauties  of 
nature  cannot  soothe  the  anguish  of  the  soul. 

The  long  journey  finally  came  to  an  end,  and  the 
little  Jennette  was  just  alive  when  the  party  reached 
Lac  Qui  Parle.  She,  however,  speedily  recovered 
from  the  nearly  fatal  effects  of  the  journey,  and  be 
came  a  remarkably  healthy,  active  child,  a  great  com 
fort  to  her  lonely  mother. 

It  was  the  intention  of  Dr.  Williamson  to  remain 
with  Mr.  Pond  that  year  at  Lac  Qui  Parle,  during 
Mr.  Riggs'  absence.  But  on  the  twentieth  of  June 
a  severe  frost  cut  all  growing  crops  down  to  the 
ground,  and  the  Indians  commenced  killing  off  the 
cattle  belonging  to  the  mission.  The  doctor,  antici 
pating  a  famine,  removed  his  family  to  the  Baker 
house  near  Fort  Snelling,  and  made  it  his  home  for 
more  than  a  year.  Mr.  Pond  and  Mr.  Huggins  re 
mained  at  the  upper  station.  In  some  respects  the 
Indians  at  that  point  were  somewhat  in  advance  of 
the  lower  Indians. 

Mr.  Huggins,  who  was  an  ingenious  man,  had  con 
structed  some  years  before  an  ox  mill,  in  which  the 
corn  raised  by  the  Indians  was  ground.  Mr.  Huggins 


A    YEAS  AT  LAC   QUI  PAELE.  161 

had  also  constructed  a  hand  loom,  on  which  some  of 
the  Indian  women  learned  to  weave  cloth. 

Quite  a  little  church  had  been  gathered,  consisting 
at  first  of  Mr.  Renville's  family  and  a  few  women. 
Afterward  a  few  converts  were  gathered  from  among 
the  men.  This  church  was  something  of  a  revelation 
to  its  temporary  pastor. 

Since  Mr.  Renville  was  one  of  its  earliest  and  most 
influential  members  it  is  not  strange  that  the  church 
should  have  been  in  some  degree  affected  by  the  in 
fluence  of  his  strong  personality.  His  early  ideas  of 
the  Christian  church  having  been  formed  chiefly  on 
the  line  of  the  Roman  Catholic  faith,  they  were  not 
quite  in  accord  with  the  usages  of  New  England  Con 
gregationalism.  During  this  year  he  proposed  the 
names  of  a  number  of  persons  whom  he  wished  to 
have  admitted  to  the  church.  As  they  did  not  give 
very  satisfactory  evidence  of  piety  they  were  advised 
to  wait  till  Dr.  Williamson's  return.  Mr.  Renville 
replied  that  if  the  parties  were  not  received  they 
would  not  attend  meeting.  After  an  explanation  by 
Mr.  Pond  they  were  content  to  wait  and  continued 
to  attend  meetings  as  before. 

It  was  impossible,  in  a  church  composed  of  Indian 
converts,  to  rigidly  apply  the  standards  of  faith  and 
conduct  which  are  recognized  among  civilized  people. 
It  would  not  be  just  so  to  do.  Dr.  Williamson,  if  he 


162          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

ever  erred  in  judgment,  would  be  sure  to  err  on 
mercy's  side.  "  E'en  his  failings  leaned  to  virtue's 
side."  His  favorite  petition  must  have  been  some 
thing  in  spirit  like  the  one  given  in  "the  universal 
prayer  "  :  — 

"Help  me  to  feel  another's  woe  — 

To  hide  the  fault  I  see; 
That  mercy  I  to  others  show, 
That  mercy  show  to  me." 

At  one  time  a  young  man  was  called  up  before  the 
church  charged  with  traveling  all  day  Sunday.  The 
doctor  was  judge  advocate,  or  whatever  the  title  may 
be.  The  young  man  was  a  frank,  honest  fellow,  and 
the  trial  proceeded  something  like  this  :  — 

"  Did  you  travel  on  the  Sabbath?  " 

"  Yes  ;  we  traveled  all  day  Sunday." 

"  You  were  out  of  provisions  and  obliged  to  travel, 
were  you  not?" 

"  No  ;  we  had  a  good  supply  of  provisions." 

"  Well,  you  did  not  intend  to  travel  when  you  left 
home,  did  you?  " 

"  Yes  ;  I  intended  to  travel  Sunday  when  I  started 
on  my  journey,  but  I  intended  to  repent  of  it 
afterward." 

It  is  perhaps  better  to  violate  a  commandment  in 
tending  to  repent  of  the  violation  afterward  than  to 
violate  it  with  no  such  intention.  It  is  hard  at  times 


A    TEAK  AT  LAC  QUI  PAELE.  163 

to  know  what  course  to  take  in  such  cases,  and  he  is 
probably  most  like  the  divine  Master  who  is  most 
inclined  to  the  side  of  mercy.  Dr.  Williamson's 
spirit  was  of  the  temper  of  Him  who  said,  "Neither 
do  I  condemn  thee." 

This  winter  of  1842-43  was  one  of  unusual  length 
and  severity.  The  snow  was  deep  and  the  cold  in 
tense.  There  must  of  necessity  be  much  suffering 
among  people  housed  as  the  Dakotas  were  at  that 
time  and  compelled  to  expose  themselves  daily  in 
pursuit  of  food.  We  read  in  G.  H.  Pond's  journal 
such  entries  as  these  :  — 

"  Cunagi  was  left  thirty-five  miles  northeast  of  here  (Lac  Qui 
Parle)  by  her  mother,  to  die  of  hunger." 

"  Heard  that  Intpa  left  his  mother  and  aunt  ten  days  away  to  die 
of  hunger  because  they  were  unable  to  walk." 

Such  desertions  were  of  frequent  occurrence  among 
these  poor  heathen.  They  did  not  occur  from  lack  of 
humanity  or  natural  affection,  but  because  it  was  the 
only  course,  except  to  lay  down  one's  own  life  and 
benefit  no  one  by  the  sacrifice. 

The  Indians  eked  out  their  scanty  supplies  by  fish 
ing  through  the  ice  that  winter.  One  ventured  on  the 
ice  one  bitter  cold  day  to  fish.  The  missionary  said  to 
him  on  his  return  :  ' '  You  were  a  brave  man  to  go  on 
the  lake  on  such  a  day."  He  replied  :  "  I  do  not  know 


164          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

whether  I  was  a  brave  man  or  a  fool ;  "  and  verily 
there  is  sometimes  a  marked  doubt. 

A  somewhat  similar  answer  was  once  made  by  one 
who  had  been  west  hunting  grizzlies.  After  tracking 
one  a  long  distance,  he  overtook  him  and  fired.  He 
was  armed  with  a  flint-lock  gun  and  most  of  the 
charge  had  escaped  through  the  pan  in  the  chase. 
Just  enough  powder  remained  in  the  piece  to  enrage 
the  bear  without  hurting  him  much.  He  turned  on 
the  Indian  and  tore  his  arm  from  its  socket.  The 
hunter  escaped  and  got  back  to  camp,  where  he  was 
seen  by  Mr.  Pond,  who  said  to  him  :  "  It  was  a  won 
der  you  lived."  He  replied:  "I  don't  know  whether 
I  did  live  or  not."  He  died  shortly  afterward  from 
the  effects  of  his  wound. 

Mr.  Pond  varied  his  duties  that  winter  somewhat 
by  teaching  little  Amos  Huggins  to  read.  The  long 
winter  finally  passed  away,  and  with  the  return  of 
summer  Mr.  Riggs  and  family  came  back  from  their 
visit  among  friends  at  the  east.  They  were  accom 
panied  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robert  Hopkins,  then  lately 
married,  both  anxious  to  devote  their  young  energies 
and  zeal  to  the  work  of  their  Master.  Mr.  Alfred 
Longley,  a  brother  of  Mrs.  Riggs,  was  also  of  the 
party. 

Mr.  Riggs  had  determined  to  form  a  new  station 
and  visited  first  Shakpe's  village,  and  then  the  village 


A    YEAR  AT  LAC  QUI  PAELE.  165 

at  Little  Rapids,  but  meeting  opposition  at  both 
points,  went  on  to  Traverse  des  Sioux,  and  stopped 
there  without  asking  permission,  which  would  probably 
have  been  refused. 

He  commenced  erecting  mission  houses  at  that 
point,  but  the  work  was  soon  interrupted  by  the 
sad  death  of  Mr.  Longley,  who  was  drowned  while 
bathing. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Pond  and  little  Jennette,  now  a  lively 
child  of  thirteen  months,  came  down  the  river  in  the 
same  boat  and  with  the  same  crew  with  which  Mr. 
Riggs  and  party  had  made  the  journey  up.  On  arriv 
ing  at  Shakpe's  village  they  were  surprised  at  the 
action  of  the  Indians,  who  commenced  firing  at  them, 
shots  striking  in  some  instances  quite  near  the  boat. 
Mr.  Pond  quickly  placed  his  wife  and  baby  where 
they  would  be  protected  by  the  baggage,  and  turning 
the  bow  of  the  boat  toward  the  shore  ordered  the 
boatmen  to  row  fast.  At  this  critical  moment  the 
Indians  stopped  firing  and  ran  away.  It  afterwards 
appeared  that  they  supposed  it  was  Mr.  Riggs  return 
ing,  and  were  testing  his  courage  in  this  rather  annoy 
ing  manner.  It  was  never  definitely  known,  however, 
just  how  near  the  boat  they  did  design  the  shots  to 
fall. 

Mr.  Pond  and  family  returned,  not  to  Camp  Cold 
Water,  but  to  Oak  Grove.  This  was  in  June,  1843. 


166          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  preceding  winter  had  been  very  hard  on  the 
Indian  cattle  and  most  of  the  Indian  farmers  lost 
nearly  all  they  had  under  their  care.  Mr.  Quinn  had 
no  hay  for  the  cattle  belonging  to  Good  Road's  band, 
and  they  annoyed  the  garrison  so  much  that  Major 
Plympton  ordered  them  shot,  and  the  following  spring 
Mr.  Quinn  was  excused  from  plowing  for  the  Indians 
because  he  had  no  team.  Mr.  Pond  had  at  that  time 
more  than  thirty  head  under  his  care,  had  a  good 
supply  of  hay,  and  lost  but  one,  which  he  said  he  shot 
"  to  save  her  life." 

In  addition  to  providing  for  and  caring  for  his 
stock  he  selected  a  site  for  a  home  at  Oak  Grove 
and  prepared  the  materials  of  which  to  build  it.  The 
site  of  the  old  Mission  House  at  Oak  Grove,  now  in 
the  town  of  Bloomington,  was  a  beautiful  and  com 
manding  one.  The  house  was  built  on  the  high  bluff 
of  the  Minnesota,  sheltered  from  the  north  winds  by 
rising  ground  in  that  direction,  covered  with  a  fine 
growth  of  ancient  oaks.  It  was  flanked  at  a  little 
distance  on  either  hand  by  deep  ravines,  through 
which  flowed  ever-living  streams  of  pure  cold  water. 
To  the  south  the  beautiful  valley  of  the  Minnesota 
stretched  away  on  either  hand  far  as  the  eye  could 
see,  and  often  when  clothed  in  vernal  beauty  must 
have  resembled  the  fertile  plains  of  Jordan,  on  which 
the  mercenary  Lot  once  looked  with  envious  eyes,  with 


A    YEAS  AT  LAC   QUI  PAELE.  167 

this  unfortunate  additional  point  of  resemblance,  that 
the  inhabitants  thereof  were  very  wicked.  Here  and 
there  the  eye  of  the  observer  caught  glimpses  of 
silvery  reflections,  where  the  rays  of  sparkling  sunlight 
fell  upon  the  silent  lake  or  winding  river. 

The  site  selected  was  a  lovely  spot  for  a  home  and 
furnished  G.  H.  Pond  a  place  to  sojourn  until  he  was 
summoned  hence  to  the  "house  of  many  mansions." 

In  a  letter  to  his  brother,  dated  January  2,  1843,  he 
gives  some  account  of  his  winter's  work  :  — 

Most  of  the  Indians  have  returned  from  their  winter  hunt 
(tuka  akiran  hdi),  but  starving  because  the  young  men  must  needs 
hunt  Chippewas  instead  of  hunting  deer. 

They  will  now  receive  their  annuity  money  and  will  then  be  able 
to  get  more  whiskey  probably  than  they  ever  have  before.  They 
had  a  happy  New  Year  yesterday,  crying,  singing,  and  fighting, 
lyaxamani  shot  at  Little  Six  and  missed  him;  and  then  with 
powder  and  wad  shot  Good  Koad's  wife  and  blew  off  her  left  ear. 
Her  son  shot  a  man  a  few  days  ago,  and  an  old  woman,  being 
drunk,  fell  on  the  fire  and  burned  to  death.  A  few  weeks  ago  a 
drunken  soldier  froze  to  death. 

The  logs  for  the  house  we  have  got  to  the  ground,  most  of  them 
xinta  (tamarack).  The  snow  is  very  deep;  I  suppose  on  an 
average  two  feet,  which  made  it  a  severe  job  hauling  the  timber, 
as  the  swamp  was  not  frozen,  and  generally  our  track  of  the  morn 
ing  was  filled  before  we  returned  in  the  evening.  The  Indians 
seemed  pleased  to  have  us  build  there,  and  I  hope  that  we  shall  be 
able  to  get  a  few  children  into  the  school. 

I  have  been  there  (at  Oak  Grove)  most  of  the  time  for  the  past 
three  weeks.  It  takes  Monday  and  Saturday  to  go  and  return. 


168         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

I  suppose  you  would  be  amused  to  see  me,  with  buckskin  coat  and 
pantaloons,  mittens  which  reach  nearly  to  my  elbows,  and  a  fisher 
skin  for  a  stock,  with  five  yoke  of  oxen  and  two  sleds  fastened 
together,  one  loaded  with  hay  and  the  other  with  joist,  plank,  etc., 
wading  through  the  snow  to  Nine-mile-creek  every  Monday ;  yet 
so  it  is  and  everything  has  gone  well  so  far. 

This  month  I  intend  to  remain  at  home  for  the  most  part.  I 
find  that  it  is  too  much  for  Hepan  to  take  care  of  the  cattle; 
indeed  I  find  it  enough  for  myself  to  take  care  of  them  all,  and 
have  found  very  little  leisure  since  I  commenced  haying. 

Now  that  the  Indians  have  returned  I  shall  be  troubled  by  them 
a  good  deal,  and  therefore  hope  I  shall  learn  a  little  more  Sioux ; 
but  if  next  spring  I  am  not  behind  what  I  was  last,  I  shall  think 
myself  well  off  in  respect  to  the  language. 

The  house  was  evidently  planned  and  built  with 
care,  and  was  large  enough  to  accommodate  two 
families,  having  rooms  for  each  above  and  below,  and 
was  completed  in  June,  ready  for  its  prospective 
occupants.  The  brothers  moved  into  their  new  house, 
and  were  pleased  to  find  themselves  at  last  located  in 
a  home  of  their  own,  surrounded  by  the  Lake  Calhoun 
Indians,  with  a  fair  prospect  of  laboring  successfully 
among  them. 

The  following  October,  G.  H.  Pond  went  home  to 
Connecticut,  taking  with  him  his  oldest  child,  Ruth, 
whom  he  left  in  the  family  of  his  sister,  Mrs.  Rebecca 
Hine.  In  speaking  of  this,  he  said  :  "  It  is  something 
of  a  trial  to  part  with  children,  but  I  believe  in  this, 
case  it  is  best." 


A    YEAH  AT  LAC  QUI  PAELE.  169 

During  his  stay  in  Connecticut  he  made  several 
visits  to  New  Haven  for  the  purpose  of  having  a 
catechism  printed  in  the  Dakota,  prepared  by  S.  W. 
Pond.  This  work  was  printed  by  the  brothers  at 
their  own  expense,  and  was  much  used  at  Oak  Grove 
and  Red  Wing  in  teaching  the  children. 

In  March  Mr.  Pond  returned  to  Oak  Grove,  leaving 
little  Ruth  in  Connecticut,  where  she  remained  until 
after  the  death  of  her  mother.  She  found  a  pleasant 
home  with  her  aunt,  who  treated  her  as  her  own  child 
while  she  remained  with  her. 

Mr.  Eli  Pettijohn,  a  young  brother  of  Mrs.  Huggins, 
lived  at  Oak  Grove  and  aided  in  caring  for  the  Indian 
stock  that  winter. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

TROUBLE  AT  THE  TRAVERSE  AND  BLOOMINGTON. 

DURING  the  winter  of  1843-44  the  new  station  at 
Traverse  des  Sioux  encountered  much  opposi 
tion  from  the  Indians.  Horses  and  cattle  were  killed, 
and  the  Indians  sought  in  every  way  to  remind  Mr. 
Riggs  of  the  fact  that  he  had  located  there  without 
having  first  obtained  permission.  In  a  mele'e  over 
the  shooting  of  a  horse,  an  Indian  shot  an  arrow 
at  Mr.  Riggs,  which  failed  to  hit  him.  About  this 
time  S.  W.  Pond  visited  the  Traverse  on  his  way 
from  Lac  Qui  Parle  to  Fort  Snelling.  While  he 
was  there  a  drunken  Indian  assaulted  him  with  a 
knife.  The  ladies  of  the  family  seemed  to  be  in 
mortal  terror,  Mrs.  Riggs  stating  that  they  would  be 
compelled  to  leave  that  point  unless  relief  could  be 
obtained. 

On  reaching  the  fort,  Mr.  Pond  entered  complaint 
against  the  Indians,  giving  Captain  Backus,  then  in 
command  at  the  fort,  a  full  account  of  the  state  of 
affairs  at  the  Traverse.  Shortly  afterward  Captain 
Backus  sent  word  to  Oak  Grove  that  he  had  confined 
in  the  guardhouse  an  Indian  who  had  just  come  down 

17Q 


TROUBLE  AT  THE   TRAVERSE.  171 

from  Traverse  des  Sioux  to  buy  liquor,  and  be  believed 
him  to  be  the  one  who  had  made  the  assault  on  Mr. 
Riggs.  Mr.  Pond  went  at  once  to  the  fort  and  found 
the  captain  had  the  right  man. 

On  learning  of  this  arrest  Mr.  Riggs  was  some 
what  apprehensive  of  retaliation  on  the  part  of  the 
man's  friends  and  wrote  urging  his  immediate  release. 
As  there  was  still  some  delay  he  came  all  the  way 
from  the  Traverse,  with  one  named  Tanka-Mani,  to 
obtain  the  release  of  the  prisoner.  In  the  examina 
tion  which  took  place  he  said  he  did  not  really  think 
the  man  meant  to  hit  him.  "  Ah,  Mr.  Riggs,  you 
exceed  the  bounds  of  Christian  charity,"  said  Cap 
tain  Backus,  who  was  unwilling  to  release  the  man 
and  probably  would  not  have  consented  to  do  so, 
except  for  the  expense  and  inconvenience  which 
would  attend  sending  him  to  Prairie  du  Chien  for 
trial.  He  was  finally  released.  The  arrest  did  him 
good,  and  was  followed  by  good  results  at  the 
Traverse,  although  the  natives  at  that  station  were 
never  distinguished  for  either  noble  or  humane  traits 
of  character. 

The  years  succeeding  were  years  of  seed-sowing  at 
all  the  stations.  At  Oak  Grove  the  school  was  kept 
up  regularly  in  spite  of  much  opposition  and  much 
drunkenness  on  the  part  of  the  Indians.  The  winter 
of  1844-45  was  a  very  mild  one.  We  learn  from 


172         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Gideon  Pond's  diary  that  the  lowest  point  touched 
by  the  mercury  that  season  was  ten  degrees  below, 
Fahrenheit.  In  March  the  Indians  were  all  convinced 
that  it  was  April,  an  error  not  very  infrequent  with 
them.  On  April  first,  however,  an  Indian  perished 
with  the  cold.  There  was  great  mortality  among  them 
that  year.  On  the  tenth  of  February  occurs  the  entry  : 
"The  ninth  coffin  I  have  made  since  October;" 
a  large  death-rate  considering  the  limited  number 
living  at  that  place. 

The  following  entries  in  the  journal  illustrate  in 
a  striking  manner  some  phases  of  life  among  the 
Dakotas  at  that  day  :  — 

Some  of  the  Indians  had  a  drunken  frolic  last  night  and  one 
bit  off  the  nose  of  another,  which,  some  say,  he  swallowed, 
and  others,  that  they  found  it  near  the  house  the  next  day.  The 
son  of  the  one  who  lost  his  nose  shot  the  one  who  bit  it  off 
in  the  face  with  shot,  but  probably  did  not  hurt  him  very  much. 
I  am  acquainted  with  some  who  have  had  their  fingers  and 
thumbs  bitten  off  on  such  occasions  —  fine  sport,  but  it  some 
times  causes  unpleasant  feelings  among  them,  which  is  more 
than  overbalanced,  however,  by  affording  an  interesting  subject 
of  conversation.  * 

July  12.  The  Indians  have  had  high  times  to-day.  I  am  more 
and  more  confirmed  in  the  opinion  that,  as  a  general  thing,  they 
are  extremely  glad  when  one  is  killed  by  an  enemy.  A  great 
parade  is  always  made  at  the  burial. 

To-day  has  been  peculiarly  interesting.  What  made  it  more 
than  usually  so,  they  killed  a  beef,  weighing  between  eight  hun 
dred  and  nine  hundred  pounds,  and  have  eaten  most  of  it.  In 


TEOUBLE  AT   THE   TE AVERSE.  173 

addition  to  beef,  they  had  a  keg  of  whiskey,  which  would  greatly 
enhance  the  interest  of  an  event  in  itself  interesting. 

Those  who  have  killed  an  enemy  are  permitted  to  sit  together 
and  one  by  one  relate  their  stories  and  have  the  event  pictured  on 
a  long  board  previously  prepared  and  planed  for  the  purpose. 
This  afternoon  a  neighboring  Indian  brought  a  keg  of  whiskey  to 
our  village  and  invited  the  chief  and  chief  soldier  to  drink.  The 
invitation  was  refused,  and  the  refusal  so  angered  the  Indians  that 
now,  about  sunset,  they  are  about  killing  Mahpiya-Wicaxta  (the 
chief)  and  are  running  about  the  village  yelling  in  first-rate  style. 

12,  Midnight.  The  women  and  children  all  fled  and  hid.  I  con 
clude  no  one  was  killed,  as  they  are  all  quiet  and  no  coffin  is 
wanted. 

An  affair  came  off  this  afternoon,  not  a  very  common  occurrence 
among  the  Indians.  Karboka's  daughter  quarreled  with  her  little 
brother,  and  as  her  father  could  not  stop  her  without,  he  whipped 
her.  The  girl  being  very  angry  came  over  to  the  hill  by  our 
house,  where  the  dead  are  laid  upon  the  scaffolds,  to  bewail  her 
misfortune.  Her  grandmother,  hearing  her  from  the  field  where 
she  was  picking  corn,  left  her  work  and  came  over  to  see  what 
was  the  matter  with  her  granddaughter.  Like  all  good  grannies, 
on  hearing  from  the  girl  that  her  father  had  punished  her,  she 
became  enraged,  and  in  revenge  hung  herself  by  the  portage  col 
lar  to  a  scaffold  on  which  the  corpses  lie. 

The  little  girl,  seeing  her  sympathetic  grandmother  in  such  a 
predicament,  was  so  terrified  that  she  set  up  such  a  screaming  that 
it  called  us  all  out.  It  was  in  sight  of  our  door.  Jane  was  first  on 
the  ground  and  had  the  old  woman  loosed  before  we  arrived. 
This  she  did  in  a  quick-witted  way,  worthy  the  instincts  of  her 
race.  Rightly  reasoning  that  the  rope  would  not  sustain  her 
weight  in  addition  to  that  of  the  old  lady,  she  grasped  the  rope 
above  the  old  woman's  head  and  all  came  down  together. 

Even  with  their  ideas  of  futurity,  the  old  woman  acted  a  very 
foolish  part,  for  when  one  hangs  herself,  as  a  punishment  for  the 


174          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

act,  she  has  to  drag  through  eternity  that  which  she  hangs  herself 
to,  and  at  the  same  time  be  driven  about  by  others.  Now  the  old 
woman  would  have  had  the  whole  scaffold,  which  would  have  made 
her  a  severe  load. 

In  the  opinion  of  a  Dakota,  those  who  fall  in  battle  are,  in  the 
future  state,  happiest  of  the  happy,  while  suicides  are  most  miser 
able  of  lost  spirits. 

Referring  to  the  fact  that  those  who  usually  at 
tended  Sabbath  service  had  gone  to  a  card-play 
instead,  Gideon  writes,  in  1845,  "  The  card-play  is 
called  *  Game-of-the-departed-spirits '  "  :  — 

They  believe  that  each  person  has  four  souls,  or  shades,  one  of 
which  remains  with  a  lock  of  hair  taken  from  the  head  of  the 
deceased,  one  by  the  corpse,  one  in  the  world  of  spirits,  and  one  is 
not  confined  to  any  place.  The  present  game  is  played  at  the 
expense  and  request  of  some  individuals  who  have  recently  lost 
relatives  by  death.  The  object  of  it  is  to  conciliate  the  favor  of 
the  spirits  departed.  They  believe  that  the  spirits  of  the  dead 
control  the  weather,  making  it  pleasant  or  unpleasant  at  their 
pleasure.  This  is  a  beautiful  day,  therefore  they  have  positive 
evidence  that  the  game  is  pleasing  to  those  for  whom  it  is  played. 
The  near  relatives  of  the  deceased  furnish  the  property  which  is 
staked  and  invite  persons  to  play  for  it. 

At  our  village  a  short  time  ago  the  son  of  the  chief,  Mahkah- 
nartahkah  (Ground  kicker)  made  a  ball-play  to  the  spirit  of  a 
child  he  lost  last  fall.  He  purchased  $50  or  $60  worth  of 
clothing  and  invited  ninety  men  to  play  for  it,  forty-five  on  a  side. 
Besides  this  he  feasted  them  all.  However,  the  spirit  did  not  seem 
to  be  pleased,  as  we  had  a  very  tedious  snowstorm.  Heathenism 
is  expensive. 

Last  night  a  widow  ran  off  with  her  family  in  the  night  and  left 


TROUBLE  AT  THE   TRAVERSE.  175 

her  tent  to  the  spirits,  who  frightened  her  away.  An  old  man  who 
is  here  says  the  u  spirits  "  scared  her  because  she  has  plenty  to  eat 
and  does  not  feed  them.  They  are  always  very  particular  to  feed 
the  spirits  of  their  deceased  friends  and  honor  them  by  various 
performances.  The  spirits  eat  only  the  shade  or  spirit  of  the  food ; 
the  substance  is  often  devoured  by  the  living,  who  are  not  unfre- 
quently  collected  by  invitation,  under  the  scaffold  where  the  body 
lies,  to  feast  on  that  which  is  presented  to  the  spirit. 

The  following  extracts  are  from  a  letter  written  by 
Samuel  Pond,  August,  1844  :  — 

So  far  as  this  world  is  concerned  we  are  more  comfortably  and 
pleasantly  situated  than  we  ever  expected  to  be  in  an  Indian  coun 
try,  and  I  trust  we  have  good  hope  through  grace  of  eternal  life 
in  heaven.  Though  we  have  not  had  such  success  in  our  labors  for 
the  conversion  of  the  Indians  as  we  hoped  and  wished  for,  yet  I 
do  not  know  as  we  have  good  reason  to  be  discouraged.  There  is 
much  preparatory  labor  to  be  done  by  missionaries  before  they  can 
communicate  the  gospel  to  people  of  a  strange  language,  and  there 
are  peculiar  difficulties  in  the  way  of  the  conversion  of  the  first 
who  embrace  the  gospel  among  a  heathen  people.  Though  our 
labors  have  not  resulted  in  the  conversion  of  many,  and  perhaps 
not  of  any,  yet  we  do  not  know  that  we  are  laboring  in  vain. 

It  is  slow  work  to  communicate  the  truths  of  the  gospel  to  the 
minds  of  the  heathen,  but  many  of  this  people  are  becoming  more 
and  more  acquainted  with  the  way  of  salvation,  and  we  hope  the 
word  of  God  will  not  return  unto  him  void  but  accomplish  the 
work  whereunto  he  sent  it. 

There  can  be  no  harvest  without  a  seedtime.  For  nearly  twenty 
years  the  English  missionaries  to  the  South  Sea  Islands  sowed  in 
tears.  A  large  amount  of  property  and  many  lives  were  sacrificed, 
apparently  in  vain,  but  now  they  or  their  successors  reap  in  joy, 
and  that  is  one  of  the  most  successful  of  modern  missions.  Some 


176          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

of  these  Indians  seem  desirous  to  learn  the  way  of  salvation  and  a 
few  of  them  usually  attend  meeting  at  our  house  on  the  Sabbath, 
but  such  as  manifest  a  desire  to  listen  to  the  truth  meet  with  a 
great  deal  of  opposition. 

For  many  ages  Satan  has  reigned  here  undisturbed  and  he  will 
not  give  up  his  dominion  over  this  people  without  a  struggle.  Yet 
Jesus  has  conquered  the  powers  of  darkness,  and  in  due  time  all 
the  earth  will  be  filled  with  his  glory. 

It  would  give  me  great  pleasure  to  see  you  once  more  in  this 
world,  but  I  have  more  hope  of  meeting  you  in  that  new  world, 
wherein  dwelleth  righteousness,  than  I  have  of  seeing-  you  again 
on  earth. 

The  foregoing  was  to  his  mother.  About  the  same 
time-G.  H.  Pond  wrote  in  a  little  different  strain:  — 

It  is  probable  that  we  can  do  as  much  good  here  as  we  could 
anywhere,  and  that  we  shall  be  less  likely  to  become  inordinately 
attached  to  this  life  than  we  should  in  any  other  place. 

During  several  of  the  years  last  preceding  Mr. 
Daniel  Gavin  had  been  laboring  with  little  apparent 
result  at  Red  Wing  village.  In  an  interesting  letter 
written  in  his  native  language,  which  he  always  used 
in  writing  to  Mr.  Pond,  he  speaks  of  the  various  trials 
and  discouragements  encountered  in  his  work  at  that 
point.  Mrs.  Gavin  also  adds  a  word  to  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Pond,  from  which  we  quote  :  — 

Oh,  that  I  could  give  you  a  cheering  account  of  the  result  of  our 
labors  here,  but  alas !  all  is  dark  except  to  the  eye  of  faith.  "  Lord, 
increase  our  faith."  Increase  our  confidence  in  thy  precious  prom- 


TROUBLE  AT  THE   TRAVERSE.  177 

Ises  is  our  prayer.  What  God  is  about  to  do  with  this  people  is 
known  only  to  himself.  "Whether  he  will  glorify  himself  in  their 
salvation  or  in  their  destruction,  we  know  not  now,  but  we  shall 
know  hereafter. 

The  Winnebagoes  are  circulating  the  war-pipe  among  the  Sioux 
with  the  intention  of  making  a  formidable  attack  upon  the  Sacs  and 
Foxes.  The  lower  band  has  accepted  it,  and  it  is  expected  to  reach 
us  very  soon  and  no  doubt  will  be  welcomed. 

The  Chippewas,  report  says,  meditate  an  early  attack  upon  this 
band.  Let  us  beseech  the  Lord  to  avert  the  stroke,  peradventure 
they  may  be  saved. 

Do  you  still  observe  Friday  P.M.?  [referring  to  the  woman's 
prayer  meeting] .  If  so,  do  you  remember  your  unworthy  sister 
C.?  Oh,  forget  her  not !  I  am  glad  to  hear  that  Master  Yuwipi  is 
improving.  If  he  does  not  make  a  "  Wicaxtayatapi "  *  here,  he 
may,  by  the  blessing  of  God,  be  fitted  for  a  servant  of  the  court  of 
heaven.  Courage,  my  dear  sister !  We  have  the  promise  of  God 
if  we  do  our  duty. 

About  the  year  1845  it  became  necessary  for  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Gavin  to  withdraw  from  the  Dakota  Mission 
on  account  of  Mrs.  Gavin's  failing  health.  Soon  after 
wards  the  enterprise  of  the  Lausanne  Society  was 
abandoned,  Mr.  Denton  having  also  engaged  in  other 
work.  Cornelia  Stevens  came  into  the  Indian  country 
in  1835,  a  merry  girl  of  sixteen,  and  had  therefore 
been  in  this  section  ten  years.  Laborious,  weary 
years  they  had  been,  and  now,  in  broken  health,  she 
was  going  away  apparently  to  die. 
Just  before  the  Gavins  left  Red  Wing,  their  nearest 
1  Chief. 


178          TWO  VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONARIES. 

friends,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Samuel  Pond,  made  a  canoe 
journey  of  one  hundred  and  sixty  miles  (eighty  miles 
and  return)  down  the  Mississippi  to  bid  them  farewell. 

After  leaving  the  land  of  the  Dakotas  the  Gavins 
went  to  Upper  Canada,  where  Mrs.  Gavin  regained 
her  health,  and  Mr.  Gavin  labored  several  years  with 
success  at  a  place  called  Sabrevois.  He  died  there 
about  ten  years  after  leaving  Red  Wing. 

Mrs.  Gavin  supported  her  family  by  teaching 
French  and  music,  until  her  children  were  grown. 
She  died  in  Baltimore  in  1872.  Her  oldest  son, 
Daniel,  born  at  Red  Wing,  had  an  intense  longing  for 
the  sea,  and  after  the  death  of  his  father  became  a 
sailor.'  He  was  wrecked  in  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Law 
rence  on  his  first  voyage,  but  again  went  to  sea  and 
was  buried  in  the  Indian  Ocean.  At  the  time  of  Mrs. 
Gavin's  death  but  two  of  her  children  were  living. 

Long  after  Mr.  Gavin's  death,  Mr.  Pond  wrote  of 
him  as  follows  :  — 

Friend  of  my  youth,  how  few  like  thee 
Through  a  long  life  my  eyes  have  seen; 

And  who  again  can  ever  be 
To  me  what  thou  hast  ever  been? 


Ah,  best  of  friends!  can  I  forget, 
Till  death  shall  stop  my  beating  heart, 

That  hopeful  hour  when  first  we  met, 
Qr  that  when  we  were  called  to  part? 


TEOUBLE  AT  THE   TRAVERSE.  179 

I  have  a  record  in  my  heart 

Of  choicest  treasures,  rich  and  rare, 
Of  loves  and  friendships,  true  and  pure, 

And  Gavin's  name  is  written  there. 

'T  is  written  there  in  letters  bright, 

A  brightness  which  no  age  can  dim: 
For  though  I  once  had  many  friends, 

I  had  no  other  friend  like  him. 


CHAPTER    XV. 

THE    NEW    STATION    AT    PRAIRIE VILLE. 

EARLY  in  the  winter  of  1846  the  way  seemed  to 
open  for  a  new  station  at  Shakpe  village. 
Some  time  prior  to  this  Samuel  Pond,  in  a  letter 
to  the  Missionary  Society,  said  that  more  good  could 
be  accomplished  at  the  villages  already  occupied  if 
other  contiguous  points  could  also  be  occupied.  The 
time  seemed  now  to  have  come  for  taking  possession 
of  one  of  these  points. 

A  message  arrived  at  the  Oak  Grove  Mission,  sum 
moning  Samuel  Pond  to  Colonel  Bruce's  office  at 
Fort  Snelling,  where  he  found  the  chief,  Xakpedan 
(Shakpaydan),  and  many  of  his  principal  men.  The 
agent  explained  to  Mr.  Pond  that  their  errand  was  to 
give  him  an  invitation  to  locate  at  their  village  and 
instruct  them,  and  they,  at  the  same  time,  promised 
to  send  their  children  to  school  and  give  all  necessary 
privileges,  such  as  that  of  cutting  wood  for  fuel,  grass 
for  stock,  etc. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  village  named  had 
refused  Mr.  Riggs  permission  to  locate  there,  and  Mr. 
Pond  was  well  enough  acquainted  with  the  chief, 

180 


CO 

I? 

§1 

g  1 


Q-  *; 
O  "5 
*;  co 


THE  NEW  STATION.  181 

Shakpe,  and  his  people,  to  have  but  little  confidence 
in  their  professions  and  promises.  Colonel  Bruce, 
however,  said  that  they  had  always  been  opposed  to 
schools  and  missionaries,  exerting  a  bad  influence 
over  the  other  Indians,  and  as  they  had  now  asked  for 
a  teacher  of  their  own  will  he  thought  the  opportunity 
should  be  improved. 

Mr.  Pond  gave  them  no  definite  answer  at  that  time, 
but  told  them  to  go  home  and  talk  the  matter  over 
and  he  would  go  up  after  a  while  and  see  them  and 
come  to  some  decision. 

After  waiting  a  few  weeks  Mr.  Pond  visited  Tinto- 
wan,  as  the  Indians  called  their  village,  and  met  the 
assembled  band  at  the  house  of  Oliver  Faribault,  their 
trader.  The  Indians  seemed  not  to  have  changed 
their  minds,  but  still  insisted  on  their  need  of,  and 
desire  for,  a  missionary.  They  also  said  that  no  ob 
jections  were  made  by  any  one  in  the  village.  When 
Mr.  Faribault  was  asked  his  opinion,  he  said  that  he 
was  first  to  suggest  the  move.  Although  Mr.  Pond 
suspected  that  all  was  not  just  as  it  appeared  to  be, 
he  determined  to  accept  the  invitation  and  remove  to 
Shakpe's  village. 

Materials  for  a  house  were  purchased  at  Point 
Douglass,  in  Wisconsin,  and  Gideon  went  down 
with  a  sled  and  several  yoke  of  oxen  and  brought  up 
the  frame  timbers  on  the  ice  to  Fort  Snelling.  These 


182          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

timbers  were  very  heavy,  many  of  them  being  twelve 
by  fourteen  inches  in  size.  Soon  afterward  S.  "W. 
Pond  went  down  with  four  yoke  of  oxen  and  loaded 
on  his  sled  four  thousand  feet  of  boards  and  started 
to  return,  also  on  the  ice.  Near  Grey  Cloud  Island, 
below  the  present  site  of  St.  Paul,  the  forward  yoke 
of  cattle  slipped  and  fell  on  the  ice,  and  the  accident 
turned  all  the  cattle  from  the  track  upon  weak  ice, 
where  they  all  broke  through  into  the  Mississippi  River. 

The  water  was  so  deep  that  there  was  danger  that 
the  cattle  would  all  be  drowned  ;  but  they  were  strong 
and  active  and  when  relieved  of  their  yokes  suc 
ceeded  one  after  another  in  getting  out.  Mr.  Pond 
says :  — 

"I  had  of  course  to  get  into  the  water  myself  up 
to  my  waist,  and  found  it  a  difficult  matter  to  extri 
cate  them  from  their  yokes  and  chains.  Some  of  the 
bow-pins  I  chopped  off,  but  lost  my  axe  in  the  river 
before  they  were  all  unyoked.  The  yokes  and  bows 
did  not  sink,  but  the  chains  of  course  did.  As  fast 
as  the  oxen  came  out  of  the  water  I  tied  them  to  the 
sled,  for  I  had  ropes  on  them  all,  but  with  their  addi 
tional  weight  the  sled  broke  through  the  ice  and  I  cut 
the  ropes  in  haste  and  let  them  all  go.  Some  of  them 
were  young  and  wild  and  all  of  them  were  frightened 
and  ran  off  in  different  directions,  some  on  one  side 
of  the  river  and  some  on  the  other.  I  caught  them 


THE  NEW  STATION.  183 

one  by  one  and  tied  them  to  trees.  After  recovering 
my  axe  and  chains  I  went  to  Grey  Cloud  Island  and 
got  two  men  to  help  me  unload  and  reload  my  sled. 
This  accident  detained  me  twenty-four  hours,  and  I 
felt  the  effects  of  the  wetting  and  exertion  many 
days." 

The  timbers  were  framed  and  materials  prepared  at 
Fort  Snelling,  and  on  the  return  of  spring  they  were 
loaded  on  a  barge  and  taken  up  the  river  to  the  new 
location.  Mr.  Pond  set  a  man  at  work  digging  a 
cellar  and  returned  to  Oak  Grove.  The  following 
day  the  man  who  was  left  to  dig  the  cellar  appeared 
at  Oak  Grove,  saying  that  the  Indians  had  taken  away 
his  tools  and  had  driven  him  off. 

Mr.  Pond  says  in  regard  to  this  occurrence :  — 
"  Colonel  Bruce  was  then  absent,  and  I  forget  who  was 
in  charge  of  Indian  affairs  at  the  fort,  but  I  think  he 
was  a  stranger  to  me.  When  I  went  to  him  with  my 
complaint  he  said  that  Colonel  Bruce  had  requested 
him  to  see  that  the  Indians  did  not  annoy  me  during 
his  absence  and  he  proposed  to  send  up  soldiers  to 
arrest  some  of  the  Indians.  I  told  him  I  thought  a 
letter  from  him  would  answer  my  purpose  just  as  well. 
So  he  gave  me  one.  I  went  up  and  collected  the 
Indians  together  at  Mr.  Faribault's  and  asked  him  to 
read  the  letter  to  them.  He  read  it  reluctantly  but 
correctly,  for  I  was  there  to  listen  to  it." 


184          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  work  of  building  proceeded  without  further 
interruption,  and  this  was  the  only  occasion  on  which 
military  interference  was  solicited  by  the  brothers  in 
their  missionary  work. 

The  mission  house  at  Shakopee  was  pleasantly 
located  on  gently  rising  ground,  about  half  a  mile 
south  of  the  Minnesota  Riyer.  At  a  distance  of 
twenty  rods  or  so  to  the  west  was  the  house  of 
the  fur  trader,  Oliver  Faribault.  Between  these  two 
dwellings  was  a  ravine  through  which  ran  a  never- 
failing  spring  of  clear  cold  water,  which  had  doubt 
less  served  to  determine  the  location  of  the  Indian 
village. 

The  village  was  south  of  the  mission  house  and 
near  by,  and  was  called  by  the  Dakotas  "  Tintonwan," 
signifying  "The  village  on  the  prairie."  Mr.  Pond 
named  the  place  Prairieville,  by  which  name  it  was 
known  until  the  arrival  of  white  settlers,  five  years 
later,  who,  sacrificing  euphony  to  novelty,  called  it 
Shakopee,  after  the  chief. 

Between  the  mission  house  and  the  Minnesota 
Eiver  lay  a  beautiful  and  fertile  tract  of  ' '  bottom 
land,"  as  it  is  ordinarily  termed,  subject  to  annual  or 
biennial  overflow,  the  rise  in  the  Minnesota  depending 
upon  the  depth  of  the  snows  which  accumulate  during 
the  winter  in  the  section  tributary  to  it.  The  maxi 
mum  rise  of  the  stream  is  from  twenty-five  to  thirty 


THE  NEW  STATION.  185 

feet.  The  meadow  above  described  was  something 
more  than  one  hundred  acres  in  extent. 

On  one  side  of  this  fertile  tract  ran  a  clear  spark 
ling  stream  of  water,  flowing  from  the  spring  before 
described,  itself  bounded  in  turn  by  a  rocky  bluff  ris 
ing  precipitously  from  the  brink  of  the  stream.  This 
land  was  bounded  on  the  other  side  by  the  Minnesota, 
sweeping  in  a  beautiful  curve  around  its  border.  This 
piece  of  land  was  cultivated  by  the  Indians,  and  when 
not  covered  by  water,  tadpoles,  and  fishes,  in  the 
months  of  June  and  July,  was  rich  with  waving  corn. 

In  the  fall  of  1847  the  new  home  was  ready  for  its 
occupants,  and  some  time  in  November  Mr.  Pond 
moved  his  family  to  the  new  station.  This  family 
consisted  at  that  time  of  Mrs.  Pond,  two  daughters, 
Jennette  Clarissa  and  Rebecca,  five  and  three  years  of 
age,  and  a  little  boy  scarcely  one  month  old,  called 
for  his  grandfather  Elnathan  Judson.  The  house, 
which  was  sufficiently  commodious,  was  carefully  and 
comfortably  built,  although  inexpensive  in  all  its 
appointments.  The  walls  were  carefully  filled  with 
moistened  clay,  making  them  probably  bullet-proof 
and  rendering  the  house  very  warm.  Although  the 
first  frame  house  erected  on  the  Minnesota  River, 
above  Fort  Snelling,  it  is  still  a  very  comfortable 
home  and  still  occupied  by  its  builder. 

The   band   at  Prairieville    was   a   rather   numerous 


186          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

one,  consisting  of  about  six  hundred  persons.  It  was 
noted  for  the  turbulent  and  warlike  character  of  its 
men,  and  the  chief  prided  himself  on  the  length  of 
that  line  of  chiefs  of  which  he  was  practically  the 
last  representative. 

Chief  Shakpe  was  a  man  of  marked  ability  in 
council  and  one  of  the  ablest  and  most  effective 
orators  in  the  whole  Dakota  Nation.  Some  of  his 
epigrammatic  expressions  were  often  repeated  and 
long  remembered  by  his  people.  One  such  quotation 
has  been  already  mentioned  in  connection  with  the 
battle  at  Rum  River.  Here  is  another  :  "  No  man 
who  was  absent  from  a  battle  but  would  have  been 
brave  had  he  been  there  ;  no  man  absent  from  a  coun 
cil  but  would  have  been  wise  had  he  been  present." 

With  all  his  gifts  Shakpe  was  a  man  who  would 
stoop  to  petty  thefts  such  as  few  Indian  men  would 
have  been  guilty  of,  and  it  seemed  to  give  him  little 
uneasiness  when  caught  in  the  act.  He  was  a  man 
easily  excited  by  opposition  and  vindictive  in  revenge. 
When  excited  he  ran  from  place  to  place,  laying  aside 
the  natural  dignity  of  his  race,  and  the  degree  of  his 
excitement  could  be  accurately  measured  by  the  rapid 
ity  of  his  trot.  His  character  was  quite  in  contrast 
with  that  of  Cloud-Man  of  the  Lake  Calhoun  band. 

Shakpe  was  at  first  disposed  to  be  insolent  and 
overbearing  toward  the  missionary.  He  one  day  very 


SHAKPEDAN,  OR   SHAKPE  (LITTLE   SIX). 

Last  chief  of  the  name,  executed  at  Fort  Snelling,  for  participation  in  the 
massacre  of  1862. 


THE  NEW  STATION.  187 

abruptly  asked  him:  u  How  long  are  you  going  to 
stay  here?"  Yankee-like  Mr.  Pond  replied  by  the 
query:  "How  long  are  you  going  to  stay?"  The 
conversation  passed  from  one  topic  to  another  until 
Mr.  Pond  finally  told  the  chief  that  he  had  a  forked 
tongue,  the  Dakota  idiom  for  saying  one  lies.  The 
chief  became  very  much  enraged,  and  spent  the  rest 
of  the  day  in  trotting  from  one  tepee  to  another  in 
great  excitement.  He  afterwards  said  no  man  had 
ever  ventured  to  use  such  plain  language  to  him 
before.  This  plain  talk,  however,  did  him  a  world  of 
good,  and  he  became  much  more  friendly  afterwards. 

Another  important  person  at  Prairieville  was  Oliver 
Faribault,  the  trader.  Like  many  of  the  traders,  he 
was  somewhat  autocratic  and  self-willed,  and  had 
great  influence  with  the  Indians.  His  trade  must  have 
been  quite  extensive,  since  he  bought  of  the  Indians 
at  Shakopee  and  Carver,  in  a  single  year,  fifteen  hun 
dred  deerskins,  a  large  number  for  a  single  band. 

This  trader  died  suddenly  about  the  year  1851,  but 
his -family,  consisting  of  a  wife  and  four  daughters, 
lived  many  years  in  the  old  home  and  always  had  a 
large  retinue  of  Indian  retainers  around  them,  for 
their  circle  of  native  relatives  was  very  large. 

The  voyager  on  the  Minnesota,  for  a  few  years  prior 
or  subsequent  to  the  year  1850,  would  have  found  near 
the  present  site  of  Shakopee  a  noisy  and  numerous 


188         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES4. 

band  of  Indians.  If  a  nervous  or  a  timid  man,  they 
would  have  sadly  tried  his  nerves  while  he  tarried 
among  them,  and  would  moreover  have  surely  tested 
his  courage.  He  would  have  found  there  Indians  of 
all  known  indigenous  varieties  save  the  innocent, 
harmless,  milk-and-water  species  which  a  certain  class 
of  popular  novelists  delight  to  describe.  He  would 
also  have  found  Indian  dogs  and  Indian  ponies,  the 
former  in  formidable  numbers.  Very  likely  the  Indi 
ans  would  have  been  compelling  the  ponies  to  fight, 
a  favorite  amusement  of  the  young  bloods  of  Prairie- 
ville  in  those  days.  The  weird  scaffold  on  which  the 
dead  were  reposing  in  their  last  silent  sleep  would 
have  been  plainly  visible  on  a  slight  elevation  south 
of  the  village.  It  would  have  served  to  keep  in 
ever-present  memory  the  end  of  all  flesh,  especially  if 
the  wind  happened  to  be  in  the  south  and  it  was  the 
summer  season.  The  rattle  and  shriek  of  the  conjurer  ; 
the  song  and  tireless  tread  of  the  scalp  dance  ;  and 
the  wail  of  the  mourner  would  have  fallen  in  mingled 
and  discordant  cadence  upon  his  ear. 

If  we  except  the  tepees  of  the  Indians  and  the 
crowded  log  house  of  the  trader,  the  only  place  where 
he  could  have  found  shelter  would  have  been  the 
home  of  the  missionary,  and  many  travelers  it  hos 
pitably  entertained  during  those  five  long  years  of 
isolation.  The  nearest  white  man's  dwelling  on  the 


THE  NEW  STATION.  189 

one  hand  was  the  Oak  Grove  Mission,  fourteen  miles 
distant,  and  the  Minnesota,  over  which  there  was 
neither  ferry  nor  bridge,  rolled  between.  In  any 
other  direction  it  was  more  than  fifty  miles  to  the 
nearest  neighbor. 

Possibly  the  first  view  of  the  mission  house  would 
have  suggested  to  the  traveler  the  kraals  of  an  Afri 
can  village /for  it  was  surrounded,  except  in  front,  by 
a  stockade  or  barrier  consisting  of  sharpened  stakes, 
seven  or  eight  feet  in  length,  set  close  together  in  a 
trench.  This  fence  also  enclosed  a  small  field  of  per 
haps  half  an  acre.  It  was  found  that  this  was  the 
only  way  in  which  potatoes  and  other  vegetables,  and 
in  fact  any  kind  of  property,  could  be  protected  from 
the  thievish  habits  of  certain  of  the  Indians.  Even 
this  in  itself  was  not  sufficient  and  many  a  long  night 
was  spent  in  watching  the  field.  Inside  the  fence  a 
trusty  dog  acted  as  sentinel,  until  poor  Watch  was 
poisoned  for  his  faithfulness.  His  grave  is  with  us  to 
this  day. 

Dr.  Williamson,  observing  this  material  fence,  the 
work  of  his  missionary  associates,  said  he  proposed  to 
build  a  "  moral  fence  "  around  his  house.  Mr.  Pond  re 
plied  that  he  found  the  material  fence  essential  to  his 
existence  while  the  moral  fence  was  in  building.  This 
little  isolated  station,  constantly  surrounded  by,  and 
almost  constantly  filled  with,  lawless  members  of  one 


190          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

of  the  worst  bands  of  Indians  in  Minnesota,  was  no 
earthly  paradise.  With  every  precaution  which  inge 
nuity  could  invent  and  all  the  fortitude  which  experi 
ence  assisted  by  grace  could  develop,  life  at  the 
Prairieville  station  was  but  a  doubtful  warfare  at  best. 
In  an  article  published  in  The  Missionary  Herald,  Mr. 
Pond  writes  of  this  period  as  follows  :  — 

Our  situation  in  many  respects  is  unpleasant.  We  have  no  per 
sons  residing  with  us,  and  no  white  neighbors  within  sixteen 
miles.  This  is  much  the  largest  band  of  the  Dakotas  on  the 
Minnesota,  or  Mississippi,  and  they  all  dwell  within  a  hundred 
rods  of  our  door,  some  of  them  much  nearer.  We  have  great 
reason  to  be  thankful  for  the  degree  of  peace  and  security  we 
enjoy  whilst  living  in  the  midst  of  so  many  savages,  but  we  are 
continually  annoyed  in  a  thousand  ways.  They  are  all  almost  uni 
versally  thieves  and  beggars,  and  though  we  have  endeavored  to 
have  as  little  property  exposed  as  possible  we  are  obliged  to  be 
continually  on  the  watch.  My  wife  has  been  only  a  mile  from 
home  in  three  years,  and  when  the  Indians  are  here  I  seldom  go 
out  of  sight  of  the  house  unless  I  am  obliged  to  do  so.  Few  days 
pass  in  which  they  do  not  commit  some  depredation.  I  do  not 
mention  these  things  by  way  of  complaint. 

This  particular  period  of  the  lives  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Pond  was  truly  a  night  of  toil.  Daily  and  hourly 
vexations  were  encountered  on  every  hand.  They 
were  isolated  from  all  society  except  such  as  the  occa 
sional  meetings  of  persons  living  scores  or  hundreds 
of  miles  apart  afforded.  Letters  from  friends  arrived 
not  oftener  than  once  a  month  and  often  at  much 


THE  NEW  STATION.  191 

longer  intervals.  Most  supplies  were  obtained  through 
Dr.  Weed,  of  Cincinnati,  who  acted  as  purchasing 
agent. 

The  good  doctor  exercised  some  discretionary  power 
in  filling  orders  received  from  the  missionaries,  and 
once,  when  one  of  the  scientifically  inclined  sent  for  a 
work  on  phrenology,  he  refused  to  fill  the  order,  stat 
ing  it  as  his  opinion  that  foreign  missionaries  could 
find  better  employment  than  that  of  studying  the  new 
science.  Usually  orders  were  filled  in  a  very  satis 
factory  manner. 

The  constant  vexations  of  a  house  full  of  Indians, 
bent  on  giving  annoyance  in  every  way  the  ingenuity 
of  fertile  minds  could  invent,  can  never  be  adequately 
understood  by  one  who  has  not  passed  through  similar 
experience. 

No  hour  was  too  sacred,  no  retreat  too  secluded,  for 
the  rude  entrance  of  the  Indians.  They  sat  by  the 
fire  and  smoked  their  pipes  for  hours  in  succession, 
while  their  wet  and  dirty  feet  left  an  imprint  wherever 
they  trod.  The  walls  of  the  front  hall  were  adorned 
with  choice  specimens  of  their  famous  picture-writing 
as  high  as  the  tallest  of  them  could  reach.  Their 
dirty  children  were  brought  to  be  doctored  and  their 
dead  to  be  encoffined.  The  sacred  privacy  of  life 
in  civilized  communities  was  unknown  to  those  living 
among  the  Indians. 


192          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  song  of  the  scalp  dance,  which  might  be  called 
the  Dakota  National  Hymn,  was  heard  many  long 
nights  in  succession. 

In  the  midst  of  these  annoyances,  the  second 
daughter,  always  frail,  seemed  for  a  time  entering  the 
borders  of  the  shadowed  valley,  and  the  Dakota 
women  would  come  in,  gaze  upon  her  face,  and  say  in 
their  native  language,  "  She  will  die,"  and  then  pass 
out.  Mr.  Pond  said,  "  We  supposed  she  would,  but 
did  not  find  the  oft-repeated  remark  very  consoling." 

For  the  retiring  wife,  who  was  often  compelled  to 
remain  for  days  alone,  during  the  necessary  absence 
of  the  missionary,  surrounded  as  she  was  by  the  noisy 
revelry  of  six  hundred  Indians,  life's  burdens  were 
often  heavy ;  but  she  was  one  of  those  who  can 
"  suffer  and  be  still,"  and  she  never  murmured  at  the 
hardships  of  her  lot. 

The  number  who  attended  school  and  Sabbath  serv 
ices  was  never  very  large,  and  at  the  instigation  of 
Round-Wind,  mentioned  elsewhere,  the  children  who 
attended  school  were  forcibly  removed  with  a  good 
deal  of  violence  and  forbidden  to  come  again. 

In  addition  to  the  opposition  of  some  Indians  and 
the  distrust  of  others,  a  new  difficulty  was  about  this 
time  encountered  at  the  three  stations  nearest  St. 
Paul,  in  the  ease  with  which  the  Indians  could  procure 
u  fire  water"  in  that  embryo  town.  The  entire  male 


THE  NEW  STATION.  193 

portion  of  a  village  would  sometimes  become  so  drunk 
and  quarrelsome  that  the  women  would  tie  the  feet 
and  hands  of  their  liege  lords  and  allow  them  to 
remain  so  until  they  became  sober.  Occasionally  men, 
while  thus  pinioned,  rolled  into  the  fire  or  into  the 
water,  and  perished.  During  one  drunken  frolic  a 
woman  swung  a  firebrand  which  she  snatched  from 
the  fire,  so  that  a  spark  from  it  fell  into  a  package  of 
powder  a  man  had  on  his  back  and  the  explosion  of 
the  powder  killed  the  man.  This  indulgence  in  the 
use  of  liquor  among  the  Indians  was  a  very  serious 
obstacle  to  missionary  work. 

The  begging  trait  of  the  Indian  character  was 
another  great  annoyance.  Sometimes  fifty  in  a  single 
day  would  ask,  each  for  some  little  necessary,  at  the 
same  time  reminding  the  missionary  that  he  came  to 
do  them  good  and  now  had  the  opportunity.  It  was 
impossible  to  give  them  all  they  asked  for,  and  if 
denied,  they  often  replied  something  like  this:  "  I'll 
kill  your  horse,"  or,  "  I'll  kill  your  cow,"  and  some 
times  they  were  as  good  as  their  word. 

Sometimes  the  mischievous  spirit  of  the  Indians 
outwitted  itself.  At  one  time  an  Indian  on  whom 
Mr.  Pond  could  rely  came  to  him  and  told  him  that 
the  Indians  proposed  killing  his  cow  that  night.  He 
employed  the  Indian  to  quietly  drive  her  into  the 
barn  and  awaited  developments.  After  a  time,  during 


194         TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

which  there  had  been  some  commotion  among  the 
Indians,  a  very  innocent-looking  native  came  and  told 
how  some  "bad  Indian"  had  shot  the  missionary's 
cow,  and  of  course  since  the  poor  beast  was  dead,  the 
missionary  could  do  no  better  than  turn  her  carcass 
over  to  the  Indians  that  they  might  feast  and  make 
merry.  Mr.  Pond  expressed  surprise  and  did  not 
think  it  could  be  his  cow  ;  the  Indian,  on  the  other 
hand,  was  very  sure  that  it  was.  Mr.  Pond  replied 
that  it  must  be  her  "ghost,"  and  taking  the  still 
incredulous  native  to  his  barn  exhibited  his  cow  in  a 
very  fair  state  of  bodily  health,  although  she  always 
showed  great  mental  disturbance  at  the  approach  of 
an  Indian.  At  last  it  dawned  upon  the  intellect  of 
the  bewildered  aborigine  that  the  dead  cow  belonged 
to  the  trader  and  would  have  to  be  paid  for  before  it 
was  eaten. 

Another  little  incident  illustrates  the  native  quick 
ness  of  invention  which  sometimes  characterized  the 
Dakotas.  Mr.  Pond  found  an  Indian  in  his  potato 
patch  one  night  apparently  searching  for  something. 
On  inquiring  the  object  of  his  search,  the  quick-witted 
but  mendacious  rogue  replied  that  he  was  looking  for 
a  small  pocket  mirror  which  he  had  lost.  Mr.  Pond 
quietly  remarked,  "I  have  lived  a  good  many  years 
and  this  is  the  first  time  in  the  course  of  my  life  that 
I  ever  found  a  man  out  in  the  night  with  no  light,  but 


THE  NEW  STATION.  195 

with  a  pile  of  potatoes  at  his  feet  hunting  for  a  look 
ing-glass."  The  joke  soon  got  out  among  the  Indians 
and  the  object  of  it  was  destined  to  hear  it  often 
repeated. 

Among  the  Dakotas  most  of  the  missionaries  be 
came,  almost  of  necessity,  medical  practitioners  to 
some  extent,  and  at  Prairieville  station  the  demand 
for  medicines  was  always  more  active  than  that  for 
spiritual  instruction.  Dakotas  had  a  more  realizing 
sense  of  the  diseases  of  the  body  than  of  the  sickness 
of  the  soul.  If  the  white  men  in  their  inexperience 
hastened  the  death  of  some  of  their  patients,  it  is 
probable  that  they  cured  many  more  than  they  killed, 
which  is  perhaps  about  all  that  can  be  said  of  most 
medical  practitioners. 

In  many  common  diseases,  such,  for  instance,  as 
intermittent  fevers,  croup,  and  various  malarial  dis 
orders,  Mr.  Pond  had  an  extensive  and  very  success 
ful  practice.  He  also  vaccinated  very  many  of  the 
Indians,  as  they  were  often  willing  to  be  treated  by 
him  while  they  refused  the  services  of  the  physician 
appointed  by  the  government.  At  one  time  his  repu 
tation  as  a  doctor  seemed  somewhat  in  danger.  A 
man  of  prominence  had  long  been  suffering  from  some 
mysterious  disease  and  had  been  faithfully  treated  by 
the  native  doctors  with  no  good  result.  His  friends 
at  last  came  to  the  missionary  for  medical  advice. 


19G         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  man  seemed  about  to  die.  Mr.  Pond  said  he 
did  not  wish  to  treat  him,  for  if  he  died,  as  he  proba 
bly  would,  they  would  all  say  the  white  man's  medicine 
had  killed  him.  The  Indians  replied  that  the  man 
would  die  anyway,  and  the  medicine  could  do  no  harm, 
if  it  failed  to  do  good.  Mr.  Pond  therefore  adminis 
tered  such  remedies  as  the  case  seemed  to  require,  and 
went  home.  He  had  hardly  reached  there  before  an 
Indian  rushed  in  saying  that  the  man  was  in  convul- 
sions  and  was  dying.  Mr.  Pond  caught  up  a  bottle 
of  peppermint  and  hastened  to  the  tent  where  the 
man  lay.  The  man  had  already  recovered  from  his 
convulsions  and  continued  to  improve  until  he  was 
quite  well.  By  this  little  occurrence  Mr.  Pond's 
medical  reputation  was  greatly  extended.  There  was 
a  certain  balsam  which  was  very  popular  with  the 
Indians,  and  they  had  great  faith  in  the  "costly 
medicine,"  as  they  called  quinine. 

By  his  own  admission  the  government  physician 
killed  many  of  the  Dakotas  with  his  medicines,  but  he 
said  he  supposed  it  made  little  difference,  as,  if  the 
medicine  had  not  killed  them,  their  disease  would 
have  produced  in  time  the  same  result. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  SHADOW. 

ONE  perilous  accident,  occurring  somewhat  later, 
may  be  mentioned  here,  that  the  narrative  of 
these  early  experiences  may  be  as  nearly  complete  as 
possible  before  we  pass  to  other  things. 

In  the  month  of  October,  1852,  heavy  snows  fell 
and  winter  set  in  with  unusual  severity  before  the  fif 
teenth  of  the  month.  Mr.  Pond  cut  wood  the  previ 
ous  fall,  about  three  miles  from  home,  in  what  was 
known  as  the  "big  woods."  The  sixteenth  day  of 
November,  as  the  night  was  drawing  on,  he  was 
descending  a  long,  steep  hill  nearly  three  miles  from 
home,  with  a  sleigh  load  of  wood.  As  he  drove  down 
the  hill,  the  horses  became  somewhat  unmanageable, 
and  the  sleigh  swung  against  a  stump,  crushing  Mr. 
Pond's  right  ankle  between  the  load  of  wood  and  the 
stump.  A  part  of  the  load  of  wood  fell  off,  carrying 
him  with  it.  The  horses  trotted  merrily  toward  home 
with  the  lightened  sleigh.  On  attempting  to  stand, 
Mr.  Pond  found  his  limb  was  broken,  and  when  he 
attempted  to  move,  felt  the  grating  contact  of  the 
fractured  bones.  His  position  was  a  desperate  one. 

197 


198         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  dusk  of  evening  was  gathering.  The  mercury 
was  below  zero,  and  the  chance  of  an  Indian  passing 
that  night  seemed  practically  hopeless.  A  kind  Provi 
dence  so  ordered  that  the  lines  of  the  harness  fell 
under  the  runner  before  the  horses  had  gone  more 
than  twenty  rods,  which  soon  stopped  the  team.  Mr. 
Pond  painfully  dragged  his  wounded  limb  through  the 
snow  until  he  reached  the  sleigh,  and,  climbing  upon  it, 
he  finally  reached  home. 

There  was  no  surgeon  nearer  than  Fort  Snelling, 
twenty  miles  distant.  Sending  his  little  children  out 
to  the  wood  pile  for  timber  of  which  to  make  splints, 
he  set  the  broken  bones  that  night,  and  the  next  day 
busied  himself  making  a  pair  of  crutches.  Dr.  Ames, 
of  Minneapolis,  arrived  a  day  or  two  later,  but  did  not 
remove  the  wrappings,  saying  the  bones  were  set  as 
well  as  so  bad  a  fracture  could  be.  It  was  a  long  time 
before  the  bones  knit  so  that  the  limb  could  be  used, 
and  much  longer  before  it  became  strong  again.  This 
accident  was  also  followed  by  an  almost  fatal  attack 
of  lung  fever. 

During  these  five  years  at  Shakopee,  the  loneliness 
was  somewhat  broken  by  occasional  visits  from  the 
few  white  men  who  were  led  by  business  or  inclina 
tion  into  the  Indian  country. 

A  man  named  Klepper  visited  the  station  in  1848, 
and  had  nearly  caused  serious  trouble  for  himself  and 


THE    VALLEY  OF  THE  SHADOW.          199 

» 
others  by  his  ignorance  of   Indian  character  and  his 

own  indiscretion.  He  was  a  medical  student  and  was 
anxious  to  obtain  the  skeleton  of  an  Indian.  He 
finally  secured  the  bones  of  a  child  and  put  them  in 
his  carpet  sack.  The  Indians  soon  found  that  some 
one  had  been  robbing  their  airy  necropolis  and  were 
very  much  enraged.  Mr.  Klepper  became  alarmed, 
and  asked  the  missionary  what  course  he  would  advise 
the  person  to  take  who  had  done  the  deed.  Mr.  Pond 
replied  that  he  would  advise  the  guilty  party  to  leave 
the  Indian  country  at  the  earliest  possible  moment. 

Mr.  Klepper  lost  no  time  in  acting  upon  the  advice, 
but  encountered  Dr.  Williamson  on  the  road,  who,  in 
the  kindness  of  his  heart',  insisted  on  carrying  him  on 
his  way,  and  when  he  refused,  the  doctor  seized  his 
carpet  sack,  for  the  purpose  of  at  least  relieving  him 
of  that.  Mr.  Klepper  was  in  mortal  dread  that  the 
doctor  would  learn  the  nature  of  his  baggage,  but 
finally  escaped  without  detection  from  the  land  of 
the  Dakotas. 

A  clergyman  by  the  name  of  Williams  also  visited 
the  Prairieville  station  and  left  behind  him  a  very 
pleasant  memory,  especially  with  the  younger  mem 
bers  of  the  mission  family,  to  whom  he  afterwards 
sent  the  first  toys  they  had  ever  seen. 

In  the  year  1850,  another  was  added  to  this  little 
family,  and  the  young  mother,  never  very  strong, 


200          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

gradually  failed  in  health  from  that  time.  The  oldest 
girl,  now  eight  years  of  age,  was  a  great  comfort  and 
help  to  her  mother,  whom  she  was  said  to  resemble 
closely  in  both  character  and  person.  She  was  mor 
bidly  conscientious  and  must  have  been  rather  preco 
cious,  since  she  had  finished  reading  the  Bible  through 
by  course  before  she  was  six  years  of  age.  The 
younger  daughter  was  a  frail  little  girl  from  her  birth, 
and  her  parents  had  little  expectation  that  she  would 
live  to  grow  up. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  many  cares,  domestic 
and  otherwise,  incident  to  her  lot  among  the  Dakotas, 
should  have  undermined  Mrs.  Pond's  constitution, 
already  predisposed  to  hereditary  disease.  The  sup 
port  received  by  the  missionaries  to  the  Dakotas, 
which  in  the  case  of  this  particular  station  never  ex 
ceeded  $300  per  annum,  provided  for  little  save  bare 
subsistence,  since  provisions  and  clothing  were  expen 
sive  in  this  section  at  that  time,  as  all  supplies  had  to 
be  brought  from  the  states  during  the  comparatively 
short  period  of  summer  navigation.  Mrs.  Pond  per 
formed  all  the  work  of  her  house  with  her  own  hands, 
besides  the  daily  ministry  to  the  wants  of  the  Indians 
which  her  position  made  necessary. 

In  the  fall  of  1851,  Mr.  Pond  obtained  from  the 
Board  a  year's  leave  of  absence,  and  prepared  to 
visit  New  England.  The  journey  was  a  fatiguing 


THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  SHADOW.    201 

one,  as  much  of  it  was  by  stage.  A  few  days  were 
spent  in  Michigan,  where  brothers  of  Mrs.  Pond 
were  then  living.  Somewhere  in  Ohio  a  railroad 
was  reached,  and  the  party  finally  arrived  in  Wash 
ington,  Conn.,  late  in  the  fall,  where  it  received  a 
warm  welcome. 

Kind  friends  took  charge  of  the  four  children,  for 
their  mother  was  rapidly  failing,  and  by  the  first  of 
February  it  was  evident  that  the  end  was  near.  On 
the  evening  of  the  fifth,  the  dying  mother  expressed  a 
desire  to  see  all  her  children  once  more,  knowing  that 
it  would  be  the  last  time  in  this  world.  To  the  older 
ones  she  gave  words  of  counsel  which  were  carefully 
heeded  and  diligently  followed.  Jennette  Clarissa 
never  forgot  her  mother's  parting  words.  Mr.  Ed 
ward  Pond  went  over  the  icy  hill  and  brought  Elnathan 
Judson  from  his  aunt  Jennette's,  to  receive  his  mother's 
last  kiss  and  listen  to  her  dying  words.  She  told  him 
to  be  a  good  boy  and  love  God.  To  the  youngest  she 
said,  u  Poor  boy  !  he  will  not  remember  his  mother  ! " 
and  kissed  him  farewell.  She  expressed  perfect  resig 
nation  to  His  will  who  doeth  all  things  well,  and  so 
completed  her  work.  Before  the  dawn  of  the  morn 
ing  of  the  sixth  she  had  entered  into  rest.  Her  years 
were  but  thirty-six,  and  fourteen  of  these  had  been 
spent  in  continuous  service  among  the  Dakotas.  She 
left  four  children :  Jennette  Clarissa,  died  April  7, 


202         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

1867;  Cordelia  Rebecca,  now  Mrs.  W.  J.  Dean, 
Minneapolis ;  Elnathan  Judson,  living  at  Shakopee ; 
Samuel  William,  living  at  Minneapolis. 

On  a  quiet  hillside,  in  the  old  bury  ing- ground,  they 
laid  her  mortal  part  away,  placing  upon  the  grave  this 
inscription,  which  seemed  like  an  echo  from  her  life  :  — 

"  Be  ye  also  ready,  for  at  such  an  hour  as  ye  think 
not  the  Son  of  Man  cometh." 

Yes;  as  he  journeyed  Rachel  died, 

And  ever  to  this  day, 
Our  well-beloved  Rachels  we 

Must  bury  by  the  way. 

Their  graves  are  strewn  along  the  paths 

Trod  by  the  sons  of  men; 
Like  Jacob,  we  remember  where 

We  buried  them,  and  when.  s.  W.  P. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE    DAKOTA    FRIEND.  ANOTHER    BEREAVEMENT. 

DURING  the  five  years  beginning  with  the  fall 
of  1847,  mission  work  at  Oak  Grove  had 
been  vigorously  prosecuted  with  varying  success.  The 
use  of  intoxicants  steadily  and  alarmingly  increased 
among  the  Indians,  and  their  inclination  to  work  per 
haps  as  steadily  diminished. 

G.  H.  Pond  had  been  for  some  years  pursuing  a 
course  of  studies  in  preparation  for  the  ministry  and 
was  licensed  in  1847  and  ordained  one  year  later. 

The  third  of  September,  1849,  the  first  territorial 
legislature  convened  in  St.  Paul  and  Mr.  Pond  repre 
sented  his  district  in  the  lower  house.  He  was  espe 
cially  active  in  his  efforts  in  that  body,  to  secure 
legislation  giving  civil  rights  equally  to  all,  and  pro 
hibiting  Sabbath  violation,  especially  in  the  line  of 
loading  and  unloading  steamers  on  that  day.  In 
these  efforts  he  was  in  a  measure  successful,  and  the 
initiatory  steps  taken  by  that  legislature  formed  a 
substantial  foundation  for  future  action.  The  record 
of  these  years  is  far  from  complete,  but  we  learn  that 
they  were  filled  with  hard,  conscientious  work,  and 

203 


204         TWO    VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

were  marked  like  other  years  by  trials  and  triumphs  of 
the  faith. 

Much  opposition  was  encountered  at  this  station,  as 
at  other  stations  near  the  growing  towns  of  th^e  terri 
tory,  from  prominent  men  among  the  Indians  them 
selves,  who  naturally  reasoned  that  white  men  would 
not  labor  so  assiduously  year  after  year  among  the 
Indians  unless  they  had  some  expectation  of  future 
remuneration  at  their  expense. 

Mr.  Pond  writes  under  date  of  May  13,  1850  :  — 

Last  week  the  Indians  renewed  their  threats  against  those  who 
are  disposed  to  come  to  our  religious  meetings.  The  fact  that  two 
or  three  women  who  have  not  before  attended  have  been  at 
tracted  to  us  a  few  Sabbaths  of  late  is  the  occasion  of  it.  The 
great  men  appear  to  fear  that  if  they  let  them  alone,  all  the  com 
mon  people  will  go  away  and  believe  on  Jesus.  It  is  said  that 
Red-Boy  said  that  "  whereas  the  missionaries  were  getting  away 
all  their  money,  the  clothes  should  be  torn  from  all  who  came  to 
our  meetings  on  the  Sabbath." 

At  its  annual  meeting  in  1850,  the  Dakota  Mission 
determined  to  undertake  the  publication  of  a  small 
monthly  in  the  interests  of  their  work.  This  paper 
was  designed  to  serve  a  double  purpose  —  to  furnish 
reading  matter  in  their  own  language  for  such  of  the 
Dakotas  as  could  read  ;  and  also  to  awaken  interest  in 
the  work  among  the  friends  of  missions  who  were 
imperfectly  acquainted  with  the  history  and  needs  of 
the  Dakota  work.  Gr.  H.  Pond  was  selected  to  edit 


THE  DAKOTA  FRIEND.  205 

this  paper,  which  he  continued  to  do  until  the  little 
sheet  was  discontinued.  The  Rev.  E.  D.  Neill,  now 
of  McAllister  College,  aided  him  in  this  work,  editing 
the  English  part  of  the  paper.  This  was  the  first 
religious  periodical  published  in  Minnesota. 

In  his  diary,  Mr.  Pond  speaks  of  the  first  issue  of 
this  paper  as  follows  :  — 

November  4, 1850.  Went  to  St.  Paul  with  a  manuscript  copy  oi 
The  Dakota  Friend,  and  put  it  into  the  hands  of  the  printer. 
It  has  been  with  great  reluctance  that  I  have  attempted  the  work 
of  editing  this  little  paper.  It  has  been  laid  upon  me  by  the  mis 
sionaries,  under  God.  If  I  must  perform  this  service,  if  it  is  the 
will  of  God  that  I  should,  he  will  enable  me  to  do  it.  Without  his 
assistance  I  cannot  succeed.  Lord,  I  look  to  thee  for  strength  as 
my  day  shall  be ;  and  may  thy  rich  blessing  attend  this  enterprise ! 
Oh,  give  wisdom  and  discretion  that  I  may  conduct  the  difficult 
and  responsible  work  in  thy  fear  and  to  thy  glory !  What  am  I 
that  I  should  perform  such  a  service? 

November  27.  Started  early  for  St.  Paul  and  returned  in  the 
evening,  fasting.  On  my  way  home  I  met  Governor  Ramsey,  who 
very  kindly  invited  me,  hereafter  in  my  visits  to  St.  Paul,  to  stop 
at  his  house  and  have  my  horse  put  in  his  stable. 

It  was  with  great  anxiety  that  I  waited  to  see  the  first  number 
of  The  Dakota  Friend.  It  made  a  more  creditable  appearance 
than  I  anticipated. 

S.  W.  Pond  contributed  a  number  of  pieces  in 
verse  to  this  paper,  An-pe-tu-sa-pa-win,  a  legend  of 
St.  Anthony  Falls,  first  appearing  in  its  columns. 

While  its  publication  continued,  The  Dakota  Friend 


206         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

accomplished  all  that  was  expected  of  it  by  its  origi 
nators,  but  changes  in  the  mission,  resulting  from 
new  treaties,  made  it  necessary  to  discontinue  the 
paper  in  August,  1851. 

Mr.  Pond's  family  increased,  until  there  were  seven 
children  —  five  girls  and  two  boys.  When  the  young 
est  was  about  two  years  of  age,  the  mother's  health 
began  to  fail,  and  in  the  spring  of  1853,  after  a 
lingering  illness  of  eighteen  months,  she  was  called 
home.  The  weakness  and  sufferings  of  her  last  days 
were  borne  with  the  same  patience  and  resignation 
that  had  characterized  her  in  the  manifold  toils  and 
hardships  of  her  earlier  labors  among  the  Dakotas. 
The  memory  of  such  lives  is  blessed. 


CHAPTER   XVIH. 

THE   NEW   TREATY   AND    WHAT    FOLLOWED. 

IN  the  autumn  of  1846  Dr.  Williamson  accepted 
an  invitation  from  Little  Crow's  band  at  Kaposia 
to  locate  among  them,  and  he  remained  with  that  band 
until  it  was  removed  to  the  Reserve,  in  1852.  While 
stationed  there,  he  often  visited  St.  Paul  and  other 
points,  preaching  to  white  people  and  laboring  for  the 
Master  wherever  the  way  was  open.  He  sowed  seed 
which  bore  fruit  in  after  years. 

In  the  meantime  Mr.  Riggs  had  been  laboring, 
with  little  apparent  success,  at  Traverse  des  Sioux, 
during  the  earlier  part  of  this  time.  The  four  years 
spent  by  Mr.  Riggs  and  Mr.  Hopkins  at  that  point, 
prior  to  1847,  were  years  of  anxiety  and  hardship  for 
them,  and  of  indifference  and  open  opposition  on  the 
part  of  the  natives.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Riggs  returned 
to  Lac  Qui  Parle  in  the  fall  of  1846,  remaining  there 
until  the  treaty  of  1851.  In  the  latter  year  they  went 
east  on  a  second  visit,  remaining  away  until  1852. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hopkins  remained  at  Traverse  des 
Sioux  after  the  removal  of  Mr.  Riggs,  and  were 
joined  by  Mr.  Huggins  and  family,  who  remained 

207 


208          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

there  until  their  connection  with  the  mission  work  ter 
minated.  Mr.  Hopkins  was  drowned  in  the  Minnesota 
while  bathing,  July  4,  1851.  In  this  sad  affliction  the 
Dakota  Mission  lost  a  faithful  and  energetic  member, 
and  one  whose  heart  was  in  the  work.  Shortly  after 
his  death,  Mrs.  Hopkins  returned  to  Ohio  with  her 
three  little  children,  all  born  at  Traverse  des  Sioux. 

Miss  Fannie  Huggins  had  become  connected  with 
the  Lac  Qui  Parle  station  as  teacher  in  1839,  and  was 
afterward  married  to  Mr.  Jonas  Pettijohn,  who  became 
also  himself  identified  with  that  station  as  teacher 
and  farmer. 

Above  are  briefly  noted  the  principal  changes  in 
the  working  force  at  the  various  stations,  prior  to  the 
transition  period  commencing  with  the  treaties  of  1851 
and  1852. 

The  treaty  with  the  Mdewakantonwan  and  Wakpe- 
kute  bands  was  concluded  at  Mendota,  August  5, 
Governor  Ramsey  and  Luke  Lea  acting  as  commis 
sioners.  Many  Dakota  chiefs  were  present,  including 
Little  Crow.  The  interpreter  was  the  Rev.  G.  H. 
Pond.  All  the  Indian  lands  belonging  to  the  Sioux 
were  ceded  to  the  United  States  except  a  Reservation, 
beginning  fifty  miles  above  Traverse  des  Sioux  and 
extending  up  the  river  to  the  Yellow  Medicine  River. 
This  Reserve  extended  back  ten  miles  from  the  river 
on  either  side.  The  Indians  were  to  receive  $220,000, 


THE  NEW  TREATY.  209 

and  annuities  in  addition  amounting  to  $30,000  per 
year  for  a  period  of  thirty  years.  This  treaty  became 
effective  in  1852,  and  the  Dakotas  were  removed  by 
the  government  to  their  Reservation. 

Special  grants  of  land  were  made  to  all  having 
mixed-blood  families  ;  and  to  the  traders  such  sums 
were  allowed  as  they  claimed  were  due  them  from  the 
Indians.  In  some  cases  the  amount  so  claimed  prob 
ably  exceeded  the  whole  amount  of  the  trade  up  to 
that  time. 

Many  of  the  Indians,  especially  the  older  ones, 
withdrew  from  their  hereditary  hunting  grounds  with 
sorrowing  hearts.  They  left  behind  them  the  lands  of 
their  fathers,  lands  for  which  they  and  their  ancestors 
had  been  fighting  hostile  tribes  for  generations.  Their 
possessions  were  endeared  to  them  by  the  traditions 
of  their  childhood  and  by  all  the  associations  of  their 
own  experience.  There  were  the  graves  of  their  par 
ents  and  of  their  children,  and  there  they  had  hoped 
to  one  day  sleep. 

While  the  transfer  was  in  a  sense  voluntary,  the 
Dakotas  fully  realized  that  they  were  powerless  to 
resist  the  encroachments  of  the  white  race.  They 
saw  before  them  but  the  two  alternatives  —  to  acqui 
esce  in  the  sale  or  to  submit  to  the  seizure  of  their 
lands.  Many  felt  in  their  hearts  much  as  did  the 
old  Roman  who  so  often  uttered  the  sentiment : 


210         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

"  Carthago  delenda  est"  merely  substituting  the  white 
race  for  Queen  Dido's  troublesome  city.  Among 
the  Dakotas,  those  who  felt  the  most  usually  said 
the  least. 

The  new  mode  of  life  within  the  prescribed  limits 
of  the  Reservation  was  naturally,  in  fact  necessarily, 
extremely  irksome  to  a  people  accustomed  to  an  act 
ive,  roving  life,  untrammeled  by  any  of  the  restraining 
rules  and  regulations  of  civilized  communities.  It  is 
not  surprising  that  such  men  as  Shakpe  and  Cloud- 
Man,  by  nature  and  custom  warriors  and  hunters, 
should  soon  have  passed  on  to  the  happy  hunting 
grounds,  leaving  behind  them  no  successors  of  like 
influence  and  experience  to  exert  a  restraining  power 
over  the  coming  generation.  Thus  one  of  the  chief 
obstacles  was  removed  which  had  existed  to  prevent 
an  outbreak  of  the  savage  spirit  of  the  race. 

To  many,  who  had  passed  the  best  years  of  their 
lives  in  exciting  hunts  or  glorious  warfare,  the  new 
mode  of  life  was 

"  Lethe's  gloom  without  its  quiet  — 
The  pain  without  the  peace  of  death." 

The  brothers  Pond  gravely  weighed  the  question  of 
removal  to  the  Reservation,  to  continue  the  work  to 
which  nearly  a  score  of  the  best  years  of  their  lives 
had  been  given. 


THE  NEW  TEEATT.  211 

They  finally  decided  in  the  negative.  Some  of  the 
reasons  which  led  to  this  decision  were  given  by 
S.  W.  Pond  as  follows:  — 

"  While  other  missionaries  hoped  the  treaty  of  1851 
would  be  of  great  benefit  to  the  Indians,  we,  taught 
by  past  experience,  believed  the  results  of  the  treaty 
would  be  evil,  and  only  evil. 

44  We  had  witnessed  the  effect  of  the  treaty  of  1837 
and  had  been  patiently  waiting  fifteen  years,  hoping 
that  when  the  twenty  years  had  expired,  during  which 
they  were  to  receive  annuities,  the  Indians  would  be 
compelled  to  resume  habits  of  industry.  When  we 
came  among  them,  we  found  them  as  a  general  rule 
an  industrious,  energetic  people,  and  we  hoped  they 
would  be  so  again,  when  they  were  compelled  to  sup 
port  themselves  without  the  aid  of  the  government. 
So  we  were  counting  the  years  as  they  went  by, 
hoping  to  see  an  end  of  the  annuities  and  a  change 
for  the  better.  It  was  like  waiting  for  a  river  to  run 
by,  for  before  the  termination  of  the  twenty  years 
another  treaty  was  made,  no  better  than  the  first,  and 
all  our  hopes  of  a  change  for  the  better  were  at  an  end. 

"  The  older  Indians  had  gradually  lost  their  former 
habits  of  industry  or  were  dead,  and  a  new  generation 
of  insolent,  reckless  fellows  had  grown  up,  who  spent 
their  lives  in  idleness  and  dissipation.  So  long  as 
they  were  scattered  in  little  bands  along  the  Missis- 


212          TWO  VOLUNTEER 


sippi  and  Minnesota  rivers,  they  were  comparatively 
harmless,  but  now  they  were  all  to  be  gathered  to 
gether  on  the  Reservation,  where  they  could  act  in 
concert  and  encourage  each  other  in  mischief.  We 
did  not  anticipate  anything  so  bad  as  the  massacre 
of  the  whites  in  1862,  but  we  thought  there  would  be 
serious  trouble  on  the  Reserve,  and  we  did  not  like 
to  take  our  families  among  such  a  horde  of  law 
less,  reckless  sons  of  Belial.  At  the  same  time,  we 
thought  the  prospect  of  our  being  useful  on  the 
Reserve  was  not  sufficiently  encouraging  to  justify 
the  expense  we  must  incur  in  removing  and  erecting 
new  buildings. 

4  'Mr.  Treat,  the  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the 
American  Board,  made  us  a  visit  and  expressed  him 
self  as  fully  satisfied  with  our  reasons  for  leaving 
the  mission. 

"  As  we  never  regretted  coming  among  the  Dakotas 
as  we  did,  so  we  never  regretted  leaving  them  when 
we  did. 

"  In  a  pecuniary  point  of  view,  it  seemed  safest 
for  us  to  continue  in  the  Mission,  for  we  did  not  then 
know  how  we  should  succeed  in  supporting  our  fam 
ilies,  and  if  we  were  taken  away  suddenly,  we  had 
little  to  leave  them. 

u  We  were  then  past  our  prime,  and  having  almost 
discarded  the  use  of  the  English  language  for  many 


THE  NEW  TREATY.  213 

years,  we  could  hardly  hope  our  preaching  would  prove 
acceptable  to  white  people. 

"  For  some  years  after  we  came  to  this  country,  we 
had  little  use  for  the  English  except  when  transacting 
business  at  the  fort,  and  we  had  little  of  that  to  do. 
The  language  of  the  fur  traders  was  French,  and 
many  of  the  Canadians  could  speak  no  other  language. 
As  we  often  had  dealings  with  such  persons,  we 
learned  enough  French  to  transact  ordinary  business 
with  them.  Mr.  Gavin  aided  us  in  learning  to  speak 
that  language,  although  I  could  read  it  very  well  and 
speak  it  some  before  I  met  him.  It  was  the  Dakota 
language  that  chiefly  engaged  our  attention,  and  we 
purposely  avoided  speaking  English  in  our  intercourse 
with  each  other,  as  soon  as  we  were  able  to  use  the 
Dakota  as  a  substitute  for  it.  In  fact,  for  many 
years  we  used  the  Dakota  so  much  more  than  we  did 
the  English  that  we  thought  in  Dakota,  dreamed  in 
Dakota,  and  when  we  spoke,  whether  we  intended  it 
or  not,  the  Dakota  would  come  first.  I  do  not  think 
we  could  speak  the  English  as  fluently  at  forty  as  at 
twenty  years  of  age. 

' '  For  nearly  twenty  years  after  we  came  here  to 
Minnesota  we  were  fully  determined  to  spend  our  lives 
with  the  Dakotas,  and  it  was  not  without  the  greatest 
reluctance  and  a  feeling  of  bitter  disappointment  that 
we  came  to  the  conclusion  that  we  must  leave  them. 


214          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

"It  is  not  easy  to  turn  one's  back  upon  the  labors 
of  nearly  twenty  years  and  commence  anew.  It  is 
especially  hard  when  the  vanished  years  have  been 
years  of  privation  and  toil, 'and  when  the  seed  sown 
in  labor  and  affliction  and  watered  with  tears  seems  to 
give  little  promise  of  fruitage.  Yet  we  are  assured 
the  Lord  of  the  harvest  will  adjust  the  accounts  in  the 
great  day  of  final  compensations." 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

WHAT   HAD    BEEN   ACCOMPLISHED. 

OjINCE  the  design  of  this  history  covers  mainly 
^—  the  work  among  the  Dakotas,  a  brief  review 
of  what  had  been  accomplished  up  to  this  time,  and 
of  the  later  history  of  the  bands  with  which  G.  H. 
and  S.  W.  Pond  principally  labored,  may  with  pro 
priety  be  here  introduced. 

The  manner  in  which  the  alphabet,  orthography, 
etc.,  of  the  Dakota  language  were  arranged  has  been 
already  fully  described,  and  also  the  pioneer  work  in 
collecting  and  arranging  a  vocabulary  of  the  Dakota. 
Mr.  S.  Pond  writes  regarding  this  :  — 

We  were  convinced  from  the  first  that  our  influence  over  the 
Indians  would  depend  very  much  on  the  correctness  and  facility 
with  which  we  spoke  their  language.  When  we  had  been  among 
them  five  or  six  years,  we  had  learned  most  of  the  words  in  com 
mon  use.  I  see  very  few  words  now  in  Dakota  books  which  I 
had  not  then  learned,  and  after  that  new  words  came  slowly. 

We  observed  that  no  white  man  among  the  Dakotas  pronounced 
the  words  correctly  or  spoke  the  language  grammatically.  Some  of 
them  had  Indian  families  and  had  lived  among  them  thirty  or  forty 
years.  We  labored  hard  to  avoid  the  defects  we  saw  in  others,  for 
we  wished  to  speak  like  Dakotas  and  not  like  foreigners. 

215 


216         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

We  began  as  soon  as  we  came  to  the  Indian  country  to  collect 
and  arrange  materials  for  a  dictionary  and  grammar  of  the  Dakota, 
and  prosecuted  the  work  steadily  from  year  to  year  until  it  was 
completed.  Though  the  grammar  is  a  much  smaller  work  than 
the  dictionary,  it  was  in  some  respects  a  more  difficult  one,  and  it 
was  a  long  time  before  I  could  attain  to  even  an  approximation  of 
what  a  grammar  should  be.  Other  grammars  were  of  very  little 
use  to  us  in  this  work.  The  Dakota  contains  many  peculiarities 
not  found  in  any  of  the  various  languages  with  which  I  am  ac 
quainted,  and  to  describe  these  peculiarities  so  as  to  be  under 
stood  required  much  patient  study. 

The  earliest  manuscript  dictionary  now  in  existence 
was  completed  sometime  previous  to  1840  and  con 
tained  about  three  thousand  words.  To  use  Mr. 
Biggs'  expressive  language,  "entering  into  other 
men's  labors,"  he  found  three  thousand  words  col-, 
lected  in  1838.  A  grammar  of  a  still  earlier  date  is 
in  the  possession  of  the  writer,  prepared,  it  would 
appear,  from  an  endorsement  on  one  of  the  blank 
leaves,  for  the  use  of  Dr.  Williamson. 

Many  of  the  words  contained  in  the  vocabulary  at 
this  date  were  of  course  primitive  words,  and  as  the 
Dakota  is  rich  in  derivative  and  compound  words,  the 
collection  thus  made  formed  the  groundwork  for 
many  additional  words.  This  collection  was  con 
stantly  added  to  and  enlarged,  until  in  the  autumn 
of  1847  it  was  practically  complete,  containing  at 
that  time  about  fourteen  thousand  words,  or  about 


WHAT  HAD  BEEN  ACCOMPLISHED.       217 

the  same  number  as  the  dictionary  published  five 
years  later  by  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  which 
was  edited  by  Mr.  Riggs.  This  manuscript  is 
now  in  the  library  of  the  Minnesota  State  Historical 
Society. 

The  grammar  was  completed  about  the  same  time, 
and  was  approved  by  Dr.  Williamson  in  very  em 
phatic  terms.  A  considerable  part  of  this  grammar 
was  printed  in  connection  with  the  dictionary,  Mr. 
Riggs  having  made  a  trip  to  Washington,  Conn., 
where  Mr.  Pond  then  was,  to  obtain  from  him  his 
manuscripts.  Dr.  Neill  says  :  "  Some  alterations  were 
made  in  the  alphabet,  but  with  the  grammar,  which 
had  been  prepared  by  Samuel  Pond,  he  [Professor 
W.  W.  Turner *]  was  especially  pleased." 

Mr.  Pond,  writing  of  his  dictionary  not  many  years 
ago,  said  :  ';  For  many  years  I  could  not  look  upon  my 
dictionary  and  grammar,  which  had  cost  me  so  many 
years  of  toil,  without  a  feeling  of  sadness 2 ; "  but 
while  the  years  thus  spent  brought  the  toilers  neither 
wealth  nor  fame  nor  other  visible  reward,  they  were 
content  to  leave  the  question  of  recompense  to  Him 
who  is  unerring  in  his  judgments. 

Most   faithfully  and   persistently  the   main   object 

1  Professor  Turner  was  an  able  philologist,  then  instructor  in  Hebrew 
and  cognate  languages  in  Union  Theological  Seminary. 

2  This  sadness  arose  from  the  fact  that  the  work  seemed,  at  that  time, 
to  have  been  all  in  vain. 


218         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSION  ABIES. 

of  missionary  efforts  was  presented  to  the  Dakotas. 
Mr.  Pond  says  :  — 

We  tried  to  make  them  understand  that  while  we  were  willing 
to  aid  them  in  things  pertaining  to  this  life,  we  regarded  things 
spiritual  and  eternal  as  of  paramount  importance ;  but  such  lan 
guage  was  new  and  strange  to  them,  and  they  were  slow  to  under 
stand  how  men  could  be  actuated  by  such  motives. 

The  Dakotas  had  a  general  belief  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
and  a  vague  apprehension  that  men  would  be  punished  in  another 
world  for  crimes  committed  in  this.  They  also  held  that  theft, 
lying,  adultery,  and  murder  were  crimes  that  deserved  punish 
ment,  so  they  had  little  to  say  against  the  doctrine  of  retribution ; 
but  when  we  made  known  the  peculiar  doctrines  of  Christianity, 
they  maintained  that  though  it  was  a  good  religion  for  us,  it  was 
not  for  them.  They,  however,  were  most  of  them  very  reserved 
in  regard  to  their  views  on  religious  subjects,  and  when  we  pre 
sented  the  claims  of  the  gospel,  they  either  listened  in  silence  or 
simply  remarked  that  it  was  all  very  good,  so  it  was  difficult  to 
ascertain  whether  or  not  they  understood  us. 

In  the  summer  of  1837  I  entered  a  tent  where  were  some  visitors 
from  the  upper  country,  and  the  man  of  the  house,  who  was  a 
brother  of  the  chief,  told  them  who  I  was  and  what  I  said  to  them 
about  religion.  I  was  surprised  to  learn  that  he  had  a  clear  under 
standing  of  some  of  the  more  important  articles  of  our  faith,  and 
could  state  them  in  plainer  language  than  I  could  have  done  at  that 
time  in  Dakota.  That  man  on  his  deathbed  told  me  he  should  die 
trusting  in  Christ,  and  wished  to  be  buried  like  a  Christian.  He 
also  requested  me  to  instruct  his  son  in  Christianity. 

So  the  seed  was  sown  in  season  and  out  of  season, 
and  the  principles  of  a  Christian  life  taught  by  precept 
and  example.  But  this  sowing,  continued  during  a 
long  season  of  years,  was  "  painfully  discouraging." 


WHAT  HAD  BEEN  ACCOMPLISHED.       219 

The  scattered  seed  seemed  often  wasted,  for  there 
were  few  conversions.  Mr.  Pond  continues  :  — 

u  What  troubled  me  most  was  the  apprehension 
that  the  mission  money  that  I  was  spending  here 
might  be  more  profitably  applied  in  some  other  field, 
and  I  endeavored  to  get  along  with  as  little  of  that 
money  as  possible.  I  drew  nothing  from  mission 
funds  for  my  support  until  I  had  been  here  three  years 
and  more,  and  then  commenced  with  a  salary  of  $200 
per  annum,  which  was  never  greatly  increased.  Be 
fore  the  outbreak  of  1862  I  saw  very  few  Dakotas 
who  seemed  to  give  evidence  of  piety.  A  few  at  Oak 
Grove,  a  few  at  Lac  Qui  Parle,  and  that  was  all." 

Among  these  few  was  Simon  Anawangmani,  who 
was  the  first  full-blood  Dakota  man  to  profess  Chris 
tianity.  In  his  youth  and  early  manhood  a  noted 
warrior,  during  the  remainder  of  his  long  life  he  was 
a  valiant  soldier  in  the  army  of  the  great  Captain. 

During  the  ten  years  prior  to  1862  that  the  annuity 
Sioux  lived  on  the  Reservation,  Dr.  Williamson  and 
Mr.  Riggs  continued  their  labors  among  them  with 
little  apparent  result.  Amos  Huggins  also,  during  a 
part  of  this  time,  taught  a  government  school  at  Lac 
Qui  Parle. 

The  seed  of  truth,  during  these  years,  seemed  to 
lie  dormant,  and  as  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  was  an 
element  in  God's  plan  for  the  abolition  of  African 


220          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

slavery,  so  the  bloody  insurrection  of  the  Sioux  in 
August,  1862,  and  the  retribution  which  followed, 
seem  to  have  been  necessary  to  break  the  rule  of  tra 
dition  and  superstition  which  presented  an  ever-present 
obstacle  to  the  civilization  and  Christianization  of  the 
Dakotas. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  speak  of  the  causes,  direct 
and  indirect,  which  resulted  in  the  outbreak.  They 
have  been  many  times  recounted  with  more  or  less 
accuracy,  and  have  become  a  part  of  history.  We 
are  now  only  concerned  with  its  results. 

The  outbreak  came  and  caused  such  a  "reign  of 
terror  "  as  had  never  been  known  in  the  northwest. 
It  is  impossible  to  describe  the  bitter  hatred  felt  by 
nearly  all  the  whites  toward  every  individual,  without 
exception,  of  the  hated  race.  This  feeling  was  modi 
fied  to  some  extent  when  it  was  found  that  several  of 
the  Christian  Indians  risked  their  own  lives  to  save  the 
lives  of  white  persons  ;  but  with  very  many,  especially 
those  of  foreign  birth,  to  be  an  Indian  was  to  be  a 
murderer,  entitled  to  neither  justice  nor  mercy. 

It  was  proven  that  none  of  the  Christianized  In 
dians  had  participated  in  the  murders,  although  some 
of  them  were  indirectly  involved  by  the  deeds  of  their 
friends  and  relatives. 

Those  who  were  most  guilty  fled  across  the  line  into 
British  territory  for  protection,  and  still  live  there.  A 


WHAT  HAD  BEEN  ACCOMPLISHED.     221 

large  number  of  those  who  did  not  flee  surrendered 
themselves  to  the  troops  under  General  H.  H.  Sibley, 
bringing  with  them  all  the  captives,  whom  they  had 
protected  from  injury. 

Two  persons  connected  with  the  mission  families 
were  killed  —  Amos  W.  and  Rufus  Huggins.  The 
former  was  brutally  murdered  before  his  own  door ; 
the  latter  was  wounded  in  the  defense  of  New  Ulm 
and  died  from  the  effects  of  the  wound.  Of  the  In 
dians  who  were  taken  prisoners,  about  three  hundred 
were  found  guilty  by  a  military  commission,  and  were 
condemned  to  death.  This  sentence  was  approved, 
although  in  very  many  cases  no  specific  acts  of  vio 
lence  were  proven.  When  the  findings  of  this  com 
mission  were  submitted  to  President  Lincoln  for  his 
approval,  he  mercifully  and  wisely  interposed  to  pre 
vent  this  second  wholesale  massacre,  and  directed  that 
only  those  who  had  been  guilty  of  murder  or  of  the 
violation  of  white  women  should  be  hanged.  Under 
this  ruling  thirty-nine  were  condemned  ;  one,  however, 
succeeded  in  proving  an  alibi,  and  but  thirty-eight 
were  executed.  This  thirty-ninth  man  was  Tatemima 
(Round-Wind),  who  aided  G.  H.  Pond  in  burying  the 
victims  of  Hole-in-the-day's  treachery,  fourteen  years 
before.  The  remaining  nearly  three  hundred  of  the 
condemned  were  confined  in  prison  at  Mankato  during 
the  succeeding  winter. 


222         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

In  January  the  Rev.  G.  H.  Pond  visited  the  prison 
and  found  a  marvelous  change  in  the  character  and 
disposition  of  the  Dakotas  whom  he  had  once  known 
so  well.  He  reached  Maukato  January  31,  and 
remained  with  the  Indians  some  days.  He  writes  in 
his  diary  of  what  occurred  as  follows  :  — 

There  are  over  three  hundred  Indians  in  prison,  the  most  of 
whom  are  in  chains.  There  is  a  degree  of  religious  interest  mani 
fested  by  them  which  is  incredible.  They  huddle  themselves 
together  every  morning  and  evening  in  the  prison,  to  hear  the 
Scriptures,  sing  hymns,  confess  one  to  another,  exhort  one  sm 
other,  and  pray  together.  They  say  that  their  whole  lives  have 
been  wicked,  that  they  have  adhered  to  the  superstitions  of  their 
ancestors  until  they  have  reduced  themselves  to  their  present  state 
of  wretchedness  and  ruin.  They  declare  that  they  have  left  it  all, 
and  will  leave  all  forever;  that  they  will  and  do  embrace  the 
religion  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  will  adhere  to  it  as  long  as  they  live; 
and  that  this  is  their  only  hope  in  this  world  and  the  next.  They 
say  that  before  they  came  to  this  state  of  mind  —  this  determina 
tion  —  their  hearts  failed  them  with  fear,  but  now  they  have  much 
mental  ease  and  comfort. 

About  fifty  men  of  the  Lake  Calhoun  band  expressed  a  wish  to 
be  baptized  by  me,  rather  than  by  any  one  else,  on  the  ground  that 
my  brother  and  myself  had  been  their  first  and  chief  instructors 
in  religion.  After  consultation  with  Rev.  Marcus  Hicks,  of  Man- 
kato,  Dr.  Williamson  and  I  decided  to  grant  their  request,  and 
administer  to  them  the  Christian  ordinance  of  baptism. 

We  made  the  conditions  as  plain  as  we  could,  and  we  proclaimed 
there  in  the  prison  that  we  would  baptize  such  as  felt  ready  to 
heartily  comply  with  the  conditions,  commanding  that  none  should 
come  forward  to  receive  the  rite  who  did  not  do  it  heartily  to  the 


WHAT  HAD  BEEN  ACCOMPLISHED.       223 

God  of  heaven,  whose  eye  penetrated  each  of  their  hearts.  All 
by  a  hearty  —  apparently  hearty  —  response  signified  their  desire 
to  receive  the  rite  on  the  conditions  offered. 

As  soon  as  preparations  could  be  completed,  and  we  had  pro 
vided  ourselves  with  a  basin  of  water,  they  came  forward,  one  by 
one,  as  their  names  were  called,  and  were  baptized  into  the  name 
of  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  while  each  subject 
stood  with  the  right  hand  raised  and  head  bowed,  and  many  of 
them  with  the  eyes  closed,  with  an  appearance  of  profound 
reverence. 

As  each  passed  from  the  place  where  he  stood  to  be  baptized,  one 
or  the  other  of  us  stopped  him  and  addressed  to  him  in  a  low 
voice  a  few  words,  such  as  our  knowledge  of  his  previous  charac 
ter,  and  the  solemnities  of  the  occasion,  suggested.  The  effect  of 
this,  in  most  cases,  seemed  to  very  much  deepen  the  solemnity  of 
the  ceremony.  I  varied  my  words  in  this  part  of  the  exercises  to 
suit  the  case  of  the  person,  and  when  gray-haired  medicine  men 
stood  before  me,  literally  trembling  as  I  laid  one  hand  on  their 
heads,  the  effect  on  my  mind  was  such  that  at  times  my  tongue 
faltered.  The  words  which  I  used  in  this  part  of  the  service 
were  the  following,  or  something  nearly  like  them  in  substance: 
"  My  brother,  this  is  a  mark  of  God  which  is  placed  upon  you. 
You  will  carry  it  while  you  live.  It  introduces  you  into  the  great 
family  of  God,  who  looked  down  from  heaven,  not  upon  your 
head  but  into  your  heart.  This  ends  your  superstition  and  from 
this  time  you  are  to  call  God  your  Father.  Itemember  to  honor 
him.  Be  resolved  to  do -his  will."  It  made  me  glad  to  hear  them 
respond  heartily,  "  Yes,  I  will." 

When  we  were  through  and  all  were  again  seated,  we  sang  a 
hymn  appropriate  to  the  occasion,  in  which  many  of  them  joined, 
and  then  prayed.  I  then  said  to  them,  "  Hitherto  I  have  addressed 
you  as  friends;  now  I  call  you  brothers.  For  years  we  have  con 
tended  together  on  this  subject  of  religion ;  now  our  contentions 
cease.  We  have  one  Father,  we  are  one  family.  I  must  now 


224         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

leave  you  and  shall  probably  see  you  no  more  in  this  world. 
While  you  remain  in  this  prison,  you  have  time  to  attend  to  reli 
gion;  you  can  do  nothing  else.  Your  adherence  to  the  Medicine- 
sack  and  the  Watawe  (consecrated  war  weapons)  has  brought  you 
to  ruin.  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  can  save  you.  Seek  him  with  all 
your  heart.  He  looks  not  upon  your  heads  nor  on  your  lips,  but 
into  your  bosoms.  Brothers,  I  will  make  use  of  a  term  of  broth 
erly  salutation,  to  which  you  have  been  accustomed  in  your  medi 
cine  dance,  and  say  to  you,  '  Brothers,  I  spread  my  hands  over 
you  and  bless  you.' "  The  hearty  answer  of  three  hundred  voices 
made  me  glad. 

The  outbreak  and  events  that  followed  it  have,  under  God, 
broken  in  shivers  the  power  of  the  priests  of  devils  which  has 
hitherto  ruled  these  wretched  tribes.  They  were  before  bound  in 
the  chains  and  confined  in  the  prison  of  paganism,  as  the  prison 
ers  in  the  prison  at  Philippi  were  bound  with  chains.  The  out 
break  and  its  attendant  consequences  have  been  like  the  earthquake 
to  shake  the  foundations  of  their  prison,  and  every  one's  bonds 
have  been  loosed.  Like  the  jailer,  in  anxious  fear  they  have 
cried,  "  Sirs,  what  must  we  do  to  be  saved?"  They  have  been 
told  to  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who  will  still  save  to  the 
uttermost  all  that  come  to  God  by  him.  They  say  they  repent 
and  forsake  their  sins,  that  they  believe  on  him,  that  they  trust  in 
him  and  will  obey  him.  Therefore  they  have  been  baptized  into 
the  name  of  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  THREE 

HUNDRED  IN  A  DAY. 


CHAFIER  XX. 

FIRSTFRUITS    AND    FILE-LEADERS. 

WHILE  the  Pentecostal  events  described  in  the 
foregoing  chapter  were  taking  place  within 
the  prison  walls  at  Mankato,  a  similar  revival  was  in 
progress  at  the  Indian  camp  near  Fort  Snelling. 
This  camp  was  composed  mainly  of  relatives  of  the 
prisoners  under  death  sentence  at  Mankato.  During 
the  winter  of  1862-63,  the  Rev.  John  P.  Williamson 
labored  faithfully  among  them,  and  accompanied  them 
the  following  spring  to  Niobrara,  on  the  Missouri  River, 
where  the  government  officials  had  determined  to 
locate  them. 

As  the  Dakota  exiles  bade  a  last  farewell  to  the 
scenes  amid  which  their  past  lives  had  been  spent,  and 
cast  a  last  lingering  look  from  the  deck  of  the  steamer 
upon  the  places  which  had  long  known  them  but  would 
know  them  no  more,  they  all  united  in  singing  one  of 
the  songs  of  Zion  in  their  native  tongue. 

Shortly  after  their  removal,  E.  R.  Pond,  and  later 
his  wife,  a  daughter  of  Robert  Hopkins,  joined  the 
mission  at  Niobrara  in  the  capacity  of  teachers,  thus 
taking  up  the  work  of  their  parents.  The  condemned 


226          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

men  were  removed  from  Mankato  to  the  government 
prison  at  Rock  Island  in  the  spring  of  1863,  and  after 
being  confined  there  for  some  years,  those  who  sur 
vived  the  confinement  were  released. 

After  their  release,  many  of  them  and  also  many 
of  those  who  were  located  in  Nebraska,  left  the 
Reservation,  renouncing  their  annuities,  and  taking 
lands  in  severalty  in  the  vicinity  of  Flandreau,  S.  D., 
and  from  that  time  on  made  as  rapid  advancement 
in  the  arts  of  civilized  life  as  perhaps  was  ever 
made  by  any  savage  people  of  nomadic  antecedents, 
whose  ancestors  had  lived  for  many  generations  by 
the  chase.  Many  of  the  active  leaders  in  the  little 
settlement  at  Flandreau  were  members  of  the  Lake 
Calhoun  band.  The  churches  among  the  Dakotas 
soon  became  active,  vigorous,  and,  to  quite  an  ex 
tent,  self-supporting  organizations,  ministered  to  by 
faithful  and  efficient  native  pastors.  Of  very  many 
of  these  but  recently  wild,  bloodthirsty,  and  super 
stitious  Dakotas,  it  might  be  truly  said  that  "all 
things  had  become  new."  Their  complete  renuncia 
tion  of  their  old  idolatrous  customs  and  incantations, 
their  observance  of  the  Sabbath,  their  missionary 
labors  among  those  more  ignorant  than  themselves 
—  all  bore  incontrovertible  testimony  to  the  reality 
of  that  faith  which  they  professed.  Readers  rapidly 
multiplied,  schools  were  well  attended,  and  the 


FIBSTFRUITS  AND  FILE-LEADEBS.        227 

Dakotas  made  substantial  progress  in  every  line  of 
advancement  open  to  them. 

The  outbreak  of  1862,  and  the  consequent  removal 
of  the  Dakotas  of  Minnesota  to  a  distant  section, 
made  it  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  for  the  elder  mis 
sionaries  with  their  families  to  accompany  them  in 
their  exile.  The  Pond  brothers  had  already  with 
drawn  from  the  Mission,  as  has  been  stated,  and  now 
Mr.  Riggs  removed  his  family,  first  to  St.  Anthony 
and  later  to  Beloit,  Wis.,  where  a  permanent  home 
was  made.  Dr.  Williamson  also  located  on  a  farm  at 
St.  Peters  and  made  that  place  his  home.  Dr.  Wil 
liamson  and  Mr.  Riggs  were,  however,  both  connected 
with  the  mission  work  as  long  as  they  lived. 

Respecting  the  general  results  of  the  many  years  of 
early  missionary  effort  expended  for  the  Dakotas  of 
Minnesota,  probably  no  man  living  is  more  competent 
to  speak  than  is  Dr.  John  P.  Williamson,  whose  entire 
life  has  been  consecrated  to  the  work,  and  whose 
opportunities  for  accurately  measuring  the  progress 
made  have  been  un equaled.  In  a  letter  to  the  writer 
referring  to  the  labors  of  the  pioneer  missionaries 
he  says :  — 

I  can  say  with  all  sincerity  that  the  results  of  their  faithful 
labors  prove  that  they  were  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord.  The  salva 
tion  of  souls  was  their  first  object,  and  the  seeds  of  truth  they 
sowed  have  been  the  principal  means  in  saving  hundreds  of  souls. 
Among  the  Sioux  who  lived  in  Minnesota  previous  to  1862,  we 


228         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

now  have  (May,  1891)  nine  Presbyterian  and  two  Congregational 
churches,  with  a  membership  of  one  thousand.  There  are  also 
four  or  five  Episcopal  churches,  with  membership  of  over  three 
hundred.  These  churches  are  now  nearly  all  supplied  by  Indian 
preachers,  who  receive  a  considerable  part  of  their  support  from 
their  churches. 

As  to  civilization,  the  scale  is  a  sliding  one,  but  the  Sioux  among 
whom  the  first  missionaries  labored  have  made  long  strides  in  that 
direction,  and  are  far  in  advance  of  any  other  Sioux.  There  are 
now  between  three  thousand  and  four  thousand  of  the  Minnesota 
Sioux,  and  they  receive  nothing  from  the  government  now  except 
what  is  due  them  by  treaty. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  in  this  connection  that  all 
of  the  three  hundred  baptized  at  Mankato  were  under 
sentence  of  death  for  murders  committed,  which  makes 
their  subsequent  stedfastness  the  more  remarkable. 

In  military  tactics,  when  it  is  desired  to  "rectify 
alignment,"  as  it  is  called,  a  certain  number  of  sol 
diers  at  regular  intervals  in  the  line  are  ordered  to 
step  some  paces  to  the  front,  their  companions  then 
receiving  orders  to  advance  to  the  position  of  the  new 
line  thus  formed.  Similar  tactics  are  employed  in 
the  economy  of  nature  and  of  grace,  when  tribes 
and  nations  are  to  make  an  advance  in  the  scale  of 
enlightenment. 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing  general  statement  of 
progress  made,  a  brief  sketch  of  the  lives  of  some 
of  those  "file-leaders"  may  not  be  entirely  without 
interest. 


FIRSTFBUITS  AND  FILE-LEADERS.       229 

Eagle  Help  (Wanmdi-Okiye)  was  one  of  the  most 
prominent,  intelligent,  and  warlike  members  of  the 
Lae  Qui  Parle  band.  Mr.  S.  W.  Pond,  who  knew  him 
long  and  intimately,  wrote  of  him  :  u  He  was  a  man 
of  uncommon  mental  abilities,  and  would  have  been 
so  considered  among  white  men."  When  the  mission 
aries  first  located  at  Lac  Qui  Parle  he  was  in  the  vigor 
of  ripe  manhood,  a  war  prophet  and  medicine  man, 
holding  a  position  somewhat  similar  perhaps  to  that 
filled  by  Red-Bird  of  the  Lake  Calhouu  band.  He 
possessed  an  inquiring  mind  and  seemed  disposed  to 
investigate  the  statements  of  the  white  men  in  a 
comparatively  candid  spirit.  His  earliest  literary  and 
religious  instruction  was  received  mainly  from  Gr.  H. 
Pond,  who  first  met  him  in  1836,  and  whose  diary 
contains  frequent  mention  of  this  man  and  of  his 
efforts  in  his  behalf.  A  letter  of  Eagle  Help  written 
to  S.  W.  Pond,  then  in  Connecticut,  in  February, 
1837,  is  in  the  possession  of  the  writer,  and  is  doubt 
less  the  oldest  specimen  of  native  Dakota  composition 
in  existence.  In  this  letter  he  expresses  the  hope 
that  the  coming  summer  "many  of  the  Dakotas  will 
learn  to  read."  This  letter  was  included  in  one  by 
Gideon  Pond,  who  says  of  it  that  the  writing  and 
spelling  would  have  been  better  if  the  writer  had  not 
"  feasted  "  just  before  writing. 

In  the  winter  of  1838  Mr.  Pond  nursed  Eagle  Help 


230         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

through  an  attack  of  smallpox,  and  he  was  also  his 
companion  the  following  year  in  his  canoe  journey 
from  Lac  Qui  Parle  to  Mendota.  This  Indian  was 
a  man  of  a  very  violent  temper  and  was  sometimes  a 
dangerous  friend  as  well  as  a  formidable  foe.  On  the 
last-mentioned  journey  a  thoughtless  remark  of  Mr. 
Pond  nearly  cost  him  his  life.  Eagle  Help,  who  had 
lately  lost  his  wife,  blackened  his  face  in  token  of 
mourning.  The  occasion  of  this  act  not  at  the 
moment  occurring  to  Mr.  Pond,  he  carelessly  said, 
44 1  suppose  you  think  that  becomes  you."  This 
remark,  so  innocently  uttered,  the  Dakota  counted  an 
intentional  personal  insult  to  be  bitterly  avenged. 

Dr.  Williamson  fell  into  a  somewhat  similar  danger 
at  one  time.  Eagle  Help  wished  to  send  a  letter  to 
a  son  who  was  then  in  Ohio,  and  the  doctor  refused  to 
take  it,  intimating  that  the  postage  would  have  to  be 
paid.  Eagle  Help  took  his  gun  and  stationed  himself 
near  the  road  where  the  doctor  must  pass ;  but  Mr. 
Huggiris,  in  the  meantime,  went  to  the  angry  Indian 
and  obtained  from  him  the  letter,  promising  to  have  it 
forwarded.  Eagle  Help  afterward  affirmed  that  if  no 
move  had  been  made  toward  forwarding  his  letter,  the 
doctor's  team  would  never  have  passed  with  him  alive, 
and  it  is  not  probable  that  it  would. 

Cicero  somewhere  makes  the  statement  that  all  men 
make  a  distinction  between  religion  and  superstition. 


FIKSTFBUITS  AND  FILE-LEADERS.       231 

In  like  manner  most  Indians  recognize  a  difference 
between  the  sorcery  of  the  conjurer  and  the  legitimate 
medical  practice  of  the  same  party.  Eagle  Help  was 
well  versed  in  both  these  methods  of  healing.  While 
he  practiced  the  cunning  arts  of  the  Indian  conjurer, 
he  at  the  same  time  administered  the  simple  remedies 
of  which  experience  had  taught  the  value.  Indian 
treatment  was  remarkably  successful  in  certain  lines 
of  surgical  practice  in  which  Indian  doctors  were 
experienced.  They  were  both  judicious  and  success 
ful  in  the  treatment  of  gunshot  wounds. 

When  Eagle  Help  was  dying  he  said,  "My  med 
icines  are  good,  but  if  another  attempts  to  use  them, 
he  may  do  more  harm  than  good,  so  throw  them  all 
away." 

In  1862,  Eagle  Help,  though  not  himself  person 
ally  engaged  in  the  conflict,  fled  to  the  British  posses 
sions  with  the  hostile  factions,  his  son  having  been 
doubtless  involved  in  the  murders.  This  young  man 
had  enjoyed  some  advantages.  He  had  spent  a  year 
in  Ohio,  and  could  speak  some  English ;  he  also  in 
herited  his  father's  superior  talents. 

Eagle  Help  died  at  a  recent  date,  in  the  Christian 
faith. 

The  party  of  which  he  was  the  acknowledged  leader 
and  patriarch  had  settled  down  to  honest  toil,  while 
his  people  had  professed  themselves  worshipers  of 


232         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Jehovah.  They  had  also  formed  a  church  organiza 
tion,  and  erected  a  church  building  wherein  regular 
church  services  were  held  before  Eagle  Help's  death. 
This  church  has  received  aid  and  encouragement  from 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  Northwest  Territory. 
Eagle  Help's  son,  who  is  still  alive,  is  a  professing 
Christian. 

Next  comes  Nancy.  Cloud-Man,  chief  of  the  Lake 
Calhoun  band,  had  two  daughters  and  also  several 
sons.  His  wife  was  a  woman  of  a  very  violent  tem 
per,  and  was  a  sister  of  the  noted  war  chief  Red-Bird. 
This  woman  often  became  so  enraged  that  no  one 
ventured  to  oppose  her.  On  one  such  occasion  she 
cut  in  pieces  and  destroyed  a  valuable  parchment 
tent,  without  interference  from  interested  parties 
standing  by. 

One  of  the  chief's  daughters  was  married  in  Indian 
form  to  an  officer  in  the  military  service.  This  couple 
had  a  daughter  whom  the  Indians  called  Wakan- 
tanka  (Great  Spirit),  but  since  that  was  the  term 
used  by  the  missionaries  for  the  name  Jehovah,  they 
naturally  objected  to  its  becoming  the  common  name 
of  a  little  half-breed  girl,  and  therefore  called  the 
child  Nancy. 

Nancy  was  a  fine,  intelligent  child,  one  of  the  most 
prepossessing  in  appearance  of  her  race,  and  as  bright 
and  intelligent  as  she  was  handsome.  When  she  was 


FIRSTFRUITS  AND  FILE-LEADERS.       233 

about  twelve  years  of  age,  her  mother  brought  her  to 
Mr.  S.  W.  Pond,  and  proposed  to  give  her  to  him  to 
be  trained  and  educated  as  a  white  girl,  as  her  cousin 
had  been  trained.  Nancy's  narrow-minded  and  self 
ish  old  grandmother  objected,  saying  she  had  taken 
care  of  the  girl  when  she  was  small,  and  now  that  she 
was  old  enough  to  bear  burdens,  she  would  not  give 
her  up  unless  a  horse  were  given  her  in  exchange. 
As  the  missionary  was  not  purchasing  girls  with 
horses,  Nancy  continued  to  live  with  and  aid  her 
loving  grandmother.  She  contrived,  however,  to  pick 
up  a  good  deal  of  instruction  at  the  mission  at  Oak 
Grove.  High-spirited  Indian  girls  are  hard  subjects 
to  make  slaves  of,  and  the  sequel  of  the  old  lady's 
oppressive  treatment  was  an  elopement  and  disgrace 
ful  matrimonial  alliance  on  Nancy's  part  in  another 
band.  The  disgraceful  feature  of  the  affair  was  the 
fact  that  the  girl's  relatives  received  no  fair  equivalent 
in  exchange  for  her.  Nancy's  cousin  had  brought  her 
loving  grandmother  a  horse,  a  fair  and  satisfactory 
equivalent,  while  Nancy  had  not  brought  the  old  lady 
a  revenue  of  even  so  much  as  a  dog  for  feasting,  and 
was  therefore  eternally  disgraced.  The  proprieties 
must  be  observed,  even  among  Indians.  They,  like 
other  races,  have  their  "sacred  white  elephants" 
of  established  custom  which  must  be  duly  worshiped. 
A  chief's  granddaughter  too ! 


234         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

The  old  lady  had  her  revenge.  Nancy  had  stored 
her  ornaments  in  the  storehouse  at  the  Oak  Grove 
Mission,  and  when  she  returned  for  them  after  her 
marriage  they  were  found  to  be  gone,  taken  by  her 
grandmother.  As  the  Indian  bride  realized  the  extent 
of  her  loss,  she  turned  away  wailing,  probably  sorrow 
ing  as  much  at  this  unkind  act  on  the  part  of  her 
relative  as  at  her  own  loss. 

Nancy  had  two  sons,  who  are  now  in  the  prime  of 
early  vigorous  manhood,  active,  intelligent,  and  influ 
ential  men.  One  of  them,  the  Rev.  John  Eastman, 
is  pastor  of  a  Presbyterian  church  at  Flandreau, 
speaks  English  with  ease  and  fluency,  and  is  respected 
by  all  who  know  him.  His  brother,  Dr.  Charles  East 
man,  is  a  graduate  of  Dartmouth  College,  and  a  man 
of  superior  education,  both  literary  and  medical,  and 
has  already  taken  high  rank  in  his  profession.  He  is 
now  government  physician  at  Pine  Ridge  Agency. 
He  was  recently  married  in  New  York  to  Miss 
Elaine  Goodale,  a  teacher. 

These  two  young  men  have  usually  been  spoken 
of  as  full  Dakotas,  but  strictly  speaking  are  three- 
quarter  bloods.  They  are  great-grandsons  of  chief 
Cloud-Man,  of  Lake  Calhoun,  the  patriotic  elements 
of  whose  character  they  seem  to  have  inherited  in  a 
marked  degree.  Such  men  —  thoughtful,  progressive, 
practical  —  are  an  honor  to  any  age  and  to  any  race. 


FIMSTFRUITS  AND  FILE-LEADERS.       235 

They  are  the  true  file-leaders  in  the  march  of  human 
progress. 

In  the  Lake  Calhoun  band  there  were  two  brothers 
whose  names  were  Hepi  (haypee)  and  Catan  (chatan), 
signifying  that  they  were  third  and  fourth  in  order 
of  birth  in  their  father's  family.  All  Dakotas  are  thus 
provided  with  names  when  they  come  into  this  world, 
and  they  are  sometimes  known  by  these  names  as  long 
as  they  live.  These  were  bright  intelligent  boys,  and 
at  the  time  when  our  sketch  begins  were  probably 
twelve  or  fifteen  years  of  age.  They  were  not  only 
bright  but  ambitious,  and  in  spite  of  the  ridicule  and 
opposition  of  their  companions  they  regularly  recited 
to  Mrs.  Pond,  who  had  undertaken  to  teach  them  to 
read  and  write.  Mrs.  Pond  became  much  attached 
to  her  pupils,  and  they  and  she  both  persevered  until 
the  brothers  could  both  read  and  write  their  own  lan 
guage  very  well.  The  task  must  have  been  often  in 
some  respects  an  unpleasant  one  for  the  teacher,  since 
the  best  of  Indians,  in  their  native  barbarism,  are  not 
given  to  divers  washings,  whatever  may  be  said  of 
their  tendency  to  carnal  ordinances. 

After  a  time  the  teacher  removed  to  Shakopee,  and 
the  lads  occasionally  visited  the  mission  station  at  that 
point,  usually  carrying  with  them  some  portion  of 
printed  Scripture  in  their  native  language.  They 
always  received  a  warm  welcome  from  their  former 


236       TWO  VOLTJNTEEB  MISSIONARIES. 

teacher,  and  seemed  to  feel  a  special  regard  for  her. 
Notwithstanding  their  literary  attainments  and  ami 
able  dispositions,  they  gave  no  evidence  of  any 
change  in  heart  or  life. 

In  the  spring  of  1858  a  war  party  of  Ojibways 
visited  Shakopee  to  obtain  scalps.  These  two  broth 
ers,  now  grown  to  manhood,  had  just  before,  with 
others,  made  a  raid  into  the  Ojibway  country  and 
had  returned  with  a  scalp.  They  encamped  on  their 
return  on  the  outskirts  of  the  village  of  Shakopee 
and  danced  nightly  around  the  scalp  which  they  had 
taken. 

There  were  about  fifteen  lodges  of  the  Dakotas  at 
that  time  jn  the  vicinity.  The  Ojibway  war  party, 
having  gained  the  bluff  which  overlooks  Shakopee 
without  being  discovered,  were  silent  but  interested 
spectators  of  the  scalp  dance,  which  took  place  under 
their  very  eyes.  The  writer  remembers  very  dis 
tinctly  standing  beside  the  dancers  the  evening  before 
the  battle  and  watching  the  progress  of  the  dance, 
which  took  place  but  a  short  distance  from  his  father's 
door. 

The  succeeding  morning,  a  few  stragglers  from  the 
main  body  of  the  Ojibways,  which  was  led  by  Hole- 
in-the-day  in  person,  shot  a  Dakota  who  was  fishing 
in  the  river,  bringing  on,  prematurely,  a  conflict. 
The  plan  of  the  Ojibway  chief  was  to  surprise  the 


FIRSTFRUITS  AND  FILE-LEADERS.       237 

Sioux  camp  in  the  night,  and  if  this  plan  had  been 
carried  out,  he  would  doubtless  have  succeeded  in 
destroying  the  camp. 

The  battle  took  place  on  low  ground,  between  Rice 
Lake  and  the  river.  Four  or  five  Dakotas  were  killed, 
and  about  the  same  number  of  Ojibways.  Catan 
was  shot  through  the  lungs  and  was  borne  away  on 
a  litter,  for  both  he  and  his  brother  were  active 
participants  in  the  battle.  The  Dakotas  hastily  in 
trenched  their  camp,  fearing  an  attack  the  following 
night ;  but  the  Ojibways  returned  at  once  to  their 
own  country,  and  after  a  few  days  the  Dakotas  also 
went  back  to  the  Reservation.  Those  who  were  slain 
in  the  fight  were  buried  the  same  evening  near  the 
Indian  camp,  and  I  remember  observing  that  one  of 
the  bodies  was  headless.  Doubtless  the  enemy  had 
taken  away  the  head  to  scalp  at  leisure.  I  well  re 
member  Catan's  smiling  farewell  as  they  bore  him 
away.  We  never  saw  him  again. 

Finally  both  these  men  were  condemned  to  death 
fort  participation  in  the  outbreak  of  1862,  but  in 
the  revival  in  the  prison  they  were  among  the  most 
active  in  persuading  their  fellow  captives  to  become 
Christians.  It  is  said  that  the  example  and  exhor 
tations  of  Catan  did  more  than  those  of  any  other 
one  of  the  Indians  confined  at  Mankato  in  preparing 
the  way  for  the  work  of  grace  wrought  there.  He 


238          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

died  at  Rock  Island,  an  apparently  sincere   follower 
of  Christ. 

Hepi  was  released  after  a  time  and  located  at  Flan- 
dreau  with  many  of  his  kindred.  He  became  a  faith 
ful  and  consistent  preacher  of  the  gospel  of  Christ. 
In  1884  he  wrote  to  his  old  friend  and  instructor, 
from  Flandreau,  as  follows:  — 

S.  W.  POND: 

Brother,  —  The  letter  which  you  sent  me  I  received  safely,  and 
rejoicing  I  read  it.  I  opened  the  envelope  and  saw  the  picture 
of  the  face  of  a  good-looking  young  woman.  "  Who  is  this?"  I 
thought  as  I  gazed  upon  it.  Then  I  gave  it  to  my  children  and 
read  the  letter.  I  used  to  see  your  two  girls  long  ago,  and  I 
thought  this  must  be  one  of  them.  "  The  older  is  dead,  and  this 
must  be  the  younger,"  I  thought.  When  I  was  a  boy,  her 
mother  was  kind  to  me,  and  it  seemed  as  if  this  were  she.  As  I 
read  the  letter,  brother,  it  seemed  as  if  you  had  come  into  my 
house,  and  I  gazed  at  the  letter  rejoicing.  God  has  watched  over 
you  well  and  multiplied  your  days,  and  we  can  now  converse  with 
each  other.  That  is  a  great  joy. 

Of  the  Dakotas  who  were  about  your  age  when  you  came,  a 
young  man,  none  are  now  living  on  earth,  and  even  of  their  chil 
dren  only  here  and  there  one  is  alive. 

Brother,  I  will  tell  you  how  many  of  my  father's  children  are 
left.  There  are  two  of  us  living,  but  we  had  not  the  same  mother. 
The  other  is  a  man  and  has  many  children,  but  I  do  not  know 
how  many,  for  they  live  far  away.  .  .  . 

In  our  church  we  always  have  good  meetings.  The  sacrament 
of  the  Lord's  Supper  we  shall  observe  the  second  of  March. 

To-day  the  wind  blows  from  the  south  and  there  is  a  great  flying 
of  snow.  I  think  perhaps  the  snow  is  melting  with  you  to-day, 
for  you  are  sheltered  from  the  wind. 


JOSEPH    BLACKSMITH   (WAKANHDISPA). 


Native   Missionary. 


FIRSTFRUITS  AND  FILE-LEADERS.        239 

That  is  all  I  will  say.  I  shall  preserve  your  daughter's  picture 
carefully,  also  yours.  With  all  my  heart  I  salute  you. 

One  of  your  kindred, 

JOSEPH  BLACKSMITH, 
HEPI  AM  I. 

After  writing  the  foregoing  letter,  Hepi  was  sent  by 
the  native  missionary  society  to  labor  among  pagan 
Indians  at  Fort  Totten.  The  few  remaining  months 
of  his  life  were  spent  there  in  successful  missionary 
work.  He  wrote  the  following  from  that  place  :  — 

FORT  TOTTEN,  Dakota,  November  21, 1885. 
Mr.  S.  W.  POND: 

My  elder  Brother,  —  To-day  I  look  toward  you  and  remember 
you.  I  came  from  Flandreau  north  to  Devil's  Lake.  I  am  in  the 
midst  of  many  Dakotas.  I  tell  them  the  words  of  God.  On  the 
Sabbath  many  of  them  come  and  hear  gladly. 

Last  fall,  at  the  meeting  at  Sisseton  Agency,  they  directed  me  to 
come  here  and  I  am  here.  Brother,  I  am  not  well,  but  not  very 
unwell.  Your  younger  brother, 

JOSEPH  BLACKSMITH. 

Shortly  afterward  his  last  letter  was  received.  The 
concluding  portion  of  this  letter  is  unfortunately 
lost,  but  of  that  which  remains  the  following  is  a 
translation  :  — 

FORT  TOTTEN,  December  10, 1885. 
S.  W.  POND: 

My  elder  Brother,  —  The  letter  you  sent  me  I  have  received  and 
rejoice.  To-day  I  raised  blood  and  was  alarmed,  but  suddenly 
they  brought  me  a  letter,  and  I  read  it  at  once,  and  as  I  gazed  at 


240         TWO    VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONARIES. 

your  words  I  felt  brave  and  was  no  longer  afraid.  You  have 
made  me  glad. 

Though  I  raise  blood,  I  feel  comfortable.  Every  Sabbath  they 
come  well  and  delight  in  singing.  I  have  never  been  confined  to 
the  bed,  and  I  continue  to  preach  to  them.  Now  the  people  with 
whom  I  am  say  to  me,  "  Now  that  you  have  raised  much  blood,  if 
you  will  perform  no  labor,  it  will  be  well  with  us."  So  they  pro 
posed  that  I  should  live  in  the  house  of  a  young  man  named  Job, 
and  I  am  living  there. 

Your  picture  that  I  have  I  show  to  them  and  say  to  them, 
"  This  is  he  who  wrote  to  me.  I  also  say,  "  This  is  he  who  made 
our  alphabet  for  us."  Then  they  look  at  your  picture  and  hand 
it  from  one  to  another.  I  tell  them  of  your  brother  Matohota 
[G.  H.  Pond],  and  say,  "When  I  was  a  boy,  these  men  gave  me 
instruction." 

Mr.  S.  W.  Pond  describes  the  last  days  of  this 
remarkable  man  in  a  letter  written  shortly  after  his 
death :  — 

Perhaps  you  know  Hepi  Wakanhdisapa  is  dead.  He  was  a  dele 
gate  to  the  General  Assembly  [Presbyterian]  last  spring,  and  was 
sent  to  Devil's  Lake  last  fall  to  preach  to  the  Indians  there.  In 
the  winter  he  wrote  me  that  he  had  been  bleeding  at  the  lungs, 
and  I  advised  him  to  stop  preaching.  His  children  at  Flandreau, 
when  they  heard  of  his  sickness,  requested  John  Williamson  to 
call  him  home,  and  he  did  so ;  but  Hepi  refused  to  leave  Devil's 
Lake.  He  said, "  I  want  to  be  with  my  children,  but  God  has  given 
me  a  work  to  do  here  and  I  must  finish  it."  His  wife  was  with 
him  when  he  died  and  gives  the  following  account  of  the  last  day 
of  his  life :  — 

"  That  day  he  seemed  to  be  tolerably  comfortable  and  five  men 
came  to  read  with  him,  with  whom  he  spent  the  whole  day  till 


FIESTFEUITS  AND  FILE-LEADEBS.        241 

evening,  when  they  went  home.  Then  he  put  on  his  coat  and 
stood  outdoors.  As  it  was  some  time  before  he  came  in,  a  girl  — 
his  daughter  —  went  out  and  stood  beside  him.  He  said  to  her, 
'  Now  I  shall  die/  and  went  into  the  house.  He  then  said,  '  I 
wanted  to  die  in  the  presence  of  my  children,  and  thought  I  should 
feel  sad,  but  I  have  been  standing  out-of-doors  and  looking  at  the 
boauty  of  the  heavens,  and  I  rejoice.  Let  us  have  our  evening 
worship  soon.'  He  then  took  the  Bible  and  read  the  account  of 
the  translation  of  Elijah,  and  prayed.  He  was  then  anxious  to 
have  the  man  return  soon  who  had  gone  to  the  post  office  for  his 
letters,  and  when  he  came  said,  'I  will  see  first  the  letters  from 
Flandreau,'  and  opened  two  of  the  letters,  but  did  not  read  them. 
He  handed  them  back,  saying, '  I  feel  strangely,'  and  then  as  they 
supported  him  he  said  to  his  wife,  '  Do  you  not  remember  that 
I  said  I  wished  to  have  my  body  lie  at  Flandreau?'  She  said, 
1  Yes.'  He  then  said  to  a  young  man  who  was  present, 4  Nephew, 
take  the  Bible  and  pray;  I  am  going  now.'  The  young  man  did 
so,  and  when  he  had  prayed,  Wakanhdisapa  raised  his  hands  and 
said, '  To  all  the  ministers  and  elders  with  whom  I  have  been  as 
sociated,  good-by,'  and  died." 

The  foregoing  are  a  few  specimen  examples  of 
many  that  have  been  brought  out  of  the  shadows  of 
darkest  paganism  into  the  glorious  light  of  the  gospel 
of  Christ  through  the  human  instrumentality  of  the 
missionary  labors  of  the  Pond  brothers  and  their 
associates,  briefly  sketched  in  these  pages. 

"  He  that  winneth  souls  is  wise  "  —  wise  for  a  more 
enduring  world  than  this. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

OLDTIME    FRIENDS. 

A  FEW  were  found  among  the  early  pioneers,  not 
connected  with  the  mission,  who  afforded  the 
Ponds  substantial  aid  in  their  pioneer  work  among  the 
Dakotas.  Perhaps  Major  Lawrence  Taliaferro  is  en 
titled  to  most  prominent  mention  in  this  connection. 
He  received  the  brothers  kindly,  and  during  all  the 
years  of  his  official  service  was  their  warm  personal 
friend  and  adviser.  He  was  ever  remembered  by 
them  both  with  feelings  of  kind  regard  and  grateful 
esteem. 

In  a  letter  written  by  G.  H.  Pond  in  the  cabin  at 
Lake  Calhoun,  November  14,  1834,  the  following  pas 
sage  is  found  :  — 

We  have  had  a  visit  to-day  from  two  men,  professors  of  reli 
gion  :  one,  an  officer  from  the  fort,  who  has  been  there  two  or 
three  months;  and  the  other,  a  trader,  who  has  been  here  one 
month.  We  had  a  prayer  meeting  in  our  house,  four  of  us,  while 
they  were  here.  The  trader  is  a  temperance  man  and  expects 
to  take  the  place  of  one  who  smuggled  and  sold  whiskey  to  the 
Indians  and  caused  some  intemperance  among  them.  This  is  one 
of  the  remarkable  occurrences. 

This  was  one  of  the  most  remarkable  prayer  meet- 

242 


OLD  TIME  FEIEND8.  243 

ings  ever  held  in  the  territory  now  called  Minnesota. 
The  visitors  from  the  fort  were  Major  Loomis,  then 
in  command  of  the  garrison  at  Fort  Snelling ;  and 
H.  H.  Sibley,  for  many  years  afterwards  the  most 
prominent  business  man  in  the  entire  northwest  and 
the  first  governor  of  the  state.  They  doubtless  prayed 
for  the  success  of  the  infant  mission  to  the  Dakotas, 
and  for  the  conversion  of  the  garrison  at  the  fort, 
both  of  which  prayers  were  in  a  measure  answered. 

The  acquaintance  at  that  time  formed  with  Mr. 
Sibley  continued  during  succeeding  years  and  was 
only  terminated  by  death.  He  ever  manifested  a 
friendly  feeling  toward  the  mission  and  its  founders, 
both  at  Lake  Calhoun  and  Oak  Grove.  He  was  one 
year  younger  than  G.  H.  Pond  and  arrived  in  the 
Indian  country  a  few  months  after  they  landed  at 
Fort  Snelling. 

The  following  letter,  received  by  G.  H.  Pond  the 
February  preceding  his  death,  will  be  found  of 
interest :  — 

My  dear  old  Friend,— I  was  much  gratified  to  receive  your  kind 
and  affectionate  reminder  of  the  olden  time,  and  I  cordially  recip 
rocate  your  sentiments.  As  I  grow  older  T  feel  more  and  more 
like  holding  fast  to  my  early  friends,  among  whom  I  have  always 
counted  you  and  your  good  brother  Samuel. 

Our  acquaintance  dates  back  to  the  year  1834,  you  having  come 
here  in  the  spring,  and  I  in  November.  Considerably  more  than 
the  lifetime  of  a  generation  have  we  been  identified  with  what  is 


244          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

now  Minnesota.  In  the  providence  of  God  our  spheres  of  action 
have  h,een  different — you  having  consecrated  yourselves  to  the 
service  of  the  Master,  while  my  avocation  has  been  purely  secular. 
That  you  have  both  well  and  faithfully  served  him  I  can  attest, 
and  I  verily  believe  that  "there  are  crowns  laid  up  for  you" 
against  that  day.  .  .  . 

I  am  now  sixty-five  years  old,  with  health  considerably  shattered 
and  infirmities  which  warn  me  that  erelong  I  must  be  gathered 
to  my  fathers.  I  "  hold  fast  to  the  faith  once  delivered  to  the 
saints."  It  would  betoken  a  false  humility  on  my  part  to  state 
that  I  have  lived  an  altogether  useless  life. 

I  do  not  believe  this,  and  yet  on  the  other  hand  I  know  I  have 
left  undone  many  things  I  ought  to  have  done.  I  can  look  back 
and  remember  hundreds  of  lost  opportunities  for  glorifying  God 
and  serving  my  fellow  men.  Judged  therefore  by  the  stern  and 
awful  requirements  of  the  law,  I  am  a  guilty  creature ;  but  I  trust 
in  the  mercy  of  God  through  his  Son  for  forgiveness,  having  no 
other  reliance  or  hope.  I  trust,  my  dear  friend,  that  we  may  be 
permitted  to  meet  again  "  before  we  go  hence  to  be  no  more  seen." 
In  any  case,  we  are  in  the  hands  of  a  gracious  and  merciful  God. 
When  you  write  your  brother  Samuel,  please  convey  to  him  my 
kindest  remembrances  and  receive  the  same  for  you  and  yours.  I 
am  always  glad  to  hear  from  you. 

Affectionately  your  friend, 

H.  H.  SlBLEY. 

On  the  occasion  of  the  death  of  G.  H.  Pond,  Gen 
eral  Sibley  wrote  of  his  early  friend  as  follows  :  — 

When  the  writer  came  to  this  country  in  1834,  he  did  not  expect 
to  meet  a  single  white  man  except  those  composing  the  garrison  at 
Fort  Snelling,  a  few  government  officials  attached  to  the  Depart 
ment  of  Indian  Aftairs,  and  the  traders  and  voyageurs  employed 
by  the  great  Fur  Company  in  its  business. 


OLD  TIME  FRIENDS.  245 

There  was  but  one  house  or  log  cabin  along  the  entire  distance 
of  three  hundred  miles  nearly,  between  Prairie  du  Chien  and  St. 
Peters,  now  Mendota,  and  that  was  at  a  point  below  Lake  Pepin, 
near  the  present  town  of  Wabashaw. 

"What  was  his  surprise,  then,  to  find  that  his  advent  had  been 
preceded  in  the  spring  of  the  same  year  by  two  young  Americans, 
Samuel  W.  and  Gideon  II.  Pond,  brothers,  scarcely  out  of  their 
teens,  who  had  built  for  themselves  a  small  hut  at  the  Indian  vil 
lage  at  Lake  Calhoun,  and  had  determined  to  consecrate  their  lives 
to  the  work  of  civilizing  and  Christianizing  the  wild  Sioux. 

For  many  long  years  these  devoted  men  labored  in  the  cause, 
through  manifold  difficulties  and  discouragements,  sustained  by  a 
faith  that  the  seed  sown  would  make  itself  manifest  in  God's 
good  time.  The  efforts  then  made  to  reclaim  the  savages  from 
their  mode  of  life,  the  influence  of  their  blameless  and  religious 
walk  and  conversation  upon  those  with  whom  they  were  brought 
in  daily  contact,  and  the  self-denial  and  personal  sacrifices  required 
at  their  hands  are  doubtless  treasured  up  in  a  higher  than  human 
record. 

Referring  to  the  literary  labors  of  the  Ponds  among 
the  Dakotas,  General  Sibley  adds  :  — 

Indeed  to  them  and  to  their  veteran  co-laborers,  Rev.  T.  S.  Wil 
liamson  and  Rev.  S.  R.  Riggs,  the  credit  is  to  be  ascribed  of  having 
produced  this  rude  and  rich  Dakota  tongue  to  the  learned  world 
in  a  written  and  systematic  shape,  the  lexicon  prepared  by  their 
joint  labors  forming  one  of  the  publiczrtions  of  the  Smithsonian 
Institution  at  Washington  City,  which  has  justly  elicited  the 
commendation  of  experts  in  philological  lore  as  a  most  valuable 
contribution  to  that  branch  of  literature. 

In  occasional  letters,  written  during  the  declining 
years  of  his  life  to  Mr.  S.  W.  Pond,  General  Sibley 


246          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

used  the  kindest  language  of  hearty  appreciation  in 
speaking  of  the  work  which  had  filled  the  past  lives 
of  these  brothers. 

The  following  are  the  concluding  letters  of  this 
correspondence :  — 

January  30, 1888. 
GENERAL  H.  H.  SIBLEY: 

My  dear  Friend,— I  have  often  felt  inclined  to  write  to  you,  but 
hesitated  because  I  have  so  little  to  write  which  you  would  care  to 
read.  You  and  I  have  moved  in  different  spheres,  for  while  my 
life  has  been  spent  in  obscurity,  yours  has  been  just  the  reverse. 
My  deafness  excuses  me  from  service  in  public,  and  I  lead  a  soli 
tary  life,  seeing  little  and  hearing  less  of  what  is  going  on  around 
me,  while  you  are  in  the  midst  of  the  bustle  of  a  great  city,  with 
many  affairs  both  public  and  private  claiming  your  attention.  But 
after  all,  is  there  not  a  feeling  of  fellowship  between  us?  Some  of 
your  friends — Turner,  Ogden,  Loomis,  and  others — were  my 
friends  too,  and  when  you  lost  them  I  lost  them;  and  many  of 
your  acquaintances  of  fifty  years  ago  were  my  acquaintances,  and 
together  we  have  seen  them  one  by  one  pass  away  until  nearly  all 
are  gone. 

Of  all  the  pioneer  missionaries  to  the  Dakotas  I  am  left  alone. 
And  do  you  not  sometimes  feel  a  little  lonesome,  though  sur 
rounded  by  a  host  of  friends  ?  Where  is  now  that  merry  company 
that  was  wont  to  assemble , every  summer  at  your  headquarters,  so 
full  of  life  and  jollity?  From  Lake  Pepin  to  Lac  Traverse,  from 
Rock  to  Frenier,  they  are  gone  —  all  gone — gone  to  oblivion:  for 
who  knows  that  they  were  ever  here?  They  have  not  been  suc 
ceeded  by  their  children,  but  supplanted  by  strangers,  some  of 
them  by  strangers  from  beyond  the  sea.  They  who  lose  the  friends 
of  their  youth  meet  with  a  loss  which  can  never  be  repaired, 
and  few  of  the  friends  of  their  youth  are  spared  to  them  who  like 


OLDTIME  FRIENDS.  247 

us  have  outlived  two  generations.  You  are  the  only  one  left  to  me, 
except  Boutwell,  and  he  is  eighty-six  and  very  infirm. 

I  believe  that  you  are  somewhat  younger  than  I,  but  we  are  both 
on  the  broken  arches  of  Addison's  mystic  bridge,  and  no  precau 
tion  will  preserve  us  from  soon  falling  into  the  gulf  below.  When 
we  fall  may  the  tide  bear  us  away  to  the  "  Isles  of  the  Blest," 
which  the  poet  saw  with  delight ! 

When  we  take  a  retrospective  view  of  our  past  lives,  we  see 
abundant  cause  for  both  regret  and  gratitude :  regret  for  our  many 
misdoings,  and  gratitude  toward  Him  who  hath  not  dealt  with  us 
after  our  sins  nor  rewarded  us  according  to  our  iniquities.  And 
can  we  not  look  forward  with  cheerful  hope,  the  hope  of  eternal 
salvation  through  him  who  "  hath  abolished  death  and  brought 
life  and  immortality  to  light"? 

General  Sibley's  reply  is  as  follows  :  — 

ST.  PAUL,  February  1, 1889. 

My  dear  old  Friend,  —  I  was  much  gratified  to  receive  your 
friendly  letter  of  the  30th  ult. 

Providence,  as  you  suggest,  having  cast  our  lot  in  different 
spheres,  we  have  necessarily  been  separated  for  many  years ;  but 
time  has  by  no  means  blunted  the  affectionate  regard  I  entertained 
for  your  sainted  brother  Gideon  and  yourself. 

We  came  to  this  then  wilderness  in  the  same  year,  1834,  and 
while  he  was  called  to  his  rest  many  years  since,  you  and  I,  for 
some  wise  purpose  of  our  heavenly  Father,  remain  to  accomplish 
our  mission,  while  almost  all  of  our  old  mutual  friends  have  been 
gathered  to  their  fathers.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Boutwell,  you,  and  my 
self  are,  if  I  mistake  not,  the  only  ones  left  of  the  original  white 
pioneers. 

Your  career  has  been  a  quiet  but  most  useful  one,  devoted  as 
you  have  been  to  the  service  of  the  Master.  Mine,  on  the  con 
trary,  has  been  a  life  of  unceasing  activity,  called  as  I  have  been 


248          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

to  fill  various  offices,  contrary  to  my  inclinations,  for  I  never 
sought  such  positions  voluntarily.  I  have  endeavored  neverthe 
less  to  discharge  the  duties  devolved  upon  me  in  the  fear  of  God, 
and  if  I  have  been  of  service  to  my  fellow  men,  I  owe  it  not  to 
any  merit  of  my  own,  but  to  Him  "  who  doeth  all  things  well." 

In  this  the  evening  of  my  life,  my  efforts,  for  more  than  forty 
years,  to  induce  the  government  to  change  its  Indian  policy,  and 
to  do  justice  to  that  race,  although  unsuccessful,  are  a  source  of 
consolation  to  me;  while  in  other  things  I  lament  my  short 
comings  and  lost  opportunities. 

You  and  I  are  so  far  advanced  in  life  that  in  the  course  of  nature 
we  have  but  a  brief  time  to  live.  May  we  have  a  well-grounded 
hope  of  meeting  in  another  blessed  sphere,  where  "  the  wicked 
cease  from  troubling  and  the  weary  are  at  rest "  I 

Another  early  and  valuable  friend  was  found  in  Dr. 
Turner,  whose  cordial  kindness  and  rare  medical  skill 
were  both  highly  appreciated  in  this  frontier  section. 
The  doctor's  estimable  wife  was  also  a  valued  friend 
of  the  ladies  of  the  missionary  party.  Mention  has 
already  been  made  of  the  kind  aid  and  encouragement 
afforded  the  enterprise  by  Major  Loomis  and  his  noble 
son-in-law,  the  lamented  Lieutenant  Ogden. 

Eugene  Gauss,  an  educated  German  military  man, 
was  also  a  worthy  member  of  this  pioneer  circle. 

In  later  days  Governor  Ramsey  and  the  Rev.  E.  D. 
Neill  were  especially  interested  in  the  brothers,  and 
Dr.  Neill  became  a  most  zealous  and  lifelong  friend 
of  them  and  their  work. 

It  would  be  vain  to  attempt  even  a  passing  notice 


OLD  TIME  FRIENDS.  249 

of  the  many  kind  friends  more  or  less  intimately  asso 
ciated  with  these  early  missionary  laborers  and  grate 
fully  remembered  by  them  both  as  long  as  they  lived. 
Providence  prepared  the  way  for  such  measure  of 
success  as  was  enjoyed,  by  raising  up,  in  many  cases, 
unexpected  friends,  and  in  others  changing  opposi 
tion  to  indifference  and  indifference  to  friendship. 


CHAPTER  XXH. 

A   PASTORATE    OF   TWENTY   YEARS. 

record  of  missionary  labor  briefly  sketched 
-*-  in  the  foregoing  pages,  commencing  on  the 
shores  of  Lake  Calhoun  in  1834,  practically  terminated 
with  the  removal  of  the  Indians  in  1853,  although 
both  the  brothers  Pond,  for  many  years  afterward, 
held  occasional  Sabbath  services  in  the  native  lan 
guage  for  such  of  the  Indians  as  remained  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  old  mission  houses.  The  number  of 
these  stragglers  varied,  but  was  often  quite  consider 
able.  With  the  transition  period,  the  narrative  con 
templated  by  the  writer  practically  ends,  but  this  story 
would  be  incomplete  without  some  mention  of  the 
work  afterwards  undertaken  and  accomplished  by 
S.  W.  and  G.  H.  Pond. 

In  October,  1853,  Dr.  Treat,  Secretary  of  the 
American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis 
sions,  wrote  Mr.  Samuel  Pond  as  follows  :  — 

The  change  in  the  treaty  still  seems  to  me  very  unfortunate,  and 
yet  we  ought  not  to  give  up  the  Indians,  though  the  government 
pursues  a  hurtful  policy  toward  them.  Hence  we  labor  in  hope 
that  the  dawn  of  day  may  come  at  length. 

We  are  very  sorry  to  have  your  brother  leave  us,  but  his  own 
250 


A  PASTORATE  OF  TWENTY  YEARS.      251 

convictions  of  duty  are  so  decided  that  we  cannot  say  nay  to  his 
request.  You,  I  trust,  will  hold  on  for  the  present  even  though 
you  are  compelled  to  hope  against  hope.  A  few  months  will  shed 
light  on  this  subject  and  will  make  certain  things  more  clear.  I 
have  a  dim  floating  expectation  of  visiting  your  mission  hereafter. 
The  time  may  not  come,  however,  for  a  year  or  two. 

This  expectation  of  visiting  the  Dakota  Mission 
was  shortly  afterward  realized,  and  after  personally 
looking  the  field  over,  Dr.  Treat  cordially  acquiesced 
in  the  decision  of  the  Pond  brothers,  believing  with 
them  that  the  prospect  of  accomplishing  good  among 
the  incoming  white  population  was  at  that  time  vastly 
greater  than  among  the  Sioux.  Both  S.  W.  and 
G.  H.  Pond  felt  in  some  respects  ill  prepared  for  the 
work  to  which  Providence  seemed  to  call  them.  Long 
disuse  of  their  native  language  had  in  some  measure 
impaired  their  command  of  it,  and  long  association 
with  a  savage  people  had,  they  feared,  somewhat 
unfitted  them  for  the  office  of  pastor. 
.  They  had  not  enjoyed  the  prestige  which  a  collegi 
ate  education  might  confer,  although  this  lack  they 
had  in  some  degree  supplied  by  so  diligently  applying 
themselves  to  the  study  of  the  Greek  and  Hebrew 
tongues  that  for  many  years  they  both  used  the  origi 
nals  in  family  worship  daily,  translating  with  such  ease 
and  readiness  that  one  unacquainted  with  the  English 
version  would  hardly  have  suspected  the  process  of 
translation. 


252          TWO  VOLUNTEER   MISSIONARIES. 

S.  W.  Pond  later  in  life  applied  himself  to  the 
Latin  and  German  with  similar  diligence,  in  order  to 
read  the  Vulgate  version  and  Luther's  translation. 
The  works  of  Cicero,  Virgil,  and  Paterculus  he  learned 
to  read  with  ease,  and  gained  a  very  accurate  knowl 
edge  of  the  involved  and  peculiar  idiomatic  construc 
tions  found  in  the  last-named  author.  Such  studies 
were  his  favorite  recreation. 

In  the  prosecution  of  these  various  lines  of  study, 
S.  W.  was  the  more  inclined  to  general  work ;  G.  H. 
to  special.  S.  W.  Pond  applied  himself  from  a  natu 
ral  fondness  for  study  in  both  classical  and  scientific 
lines,  abstractly  considered  ;  G.  H.  Pond,  on  the  other 
hand,  for  the  sake  primarily  of  the  greater  good  which 
such  acquisitions  would  enable  him  to  accomplish. 

The  nearly  a  score  of  years  spent  in  teaching  the 
Indians  and  reasoning  with  them  "of  righteousness, 
temperance,  and  judgment  to  come,"  while  not  alto 
gether  in  the  line  of  pulpit  and  pastoral  work  among 
civilized  people,  was  not  altogether  lost  time  when 
considered  in  connection  with  the  somewhat  different 
work  which  lay  before  them.  Whatever  preparation 
or  lack  of  preparation  these  brothers  may  have  had, 
they  were  surrounded  by  souls  hungry  for  the  bread 
of  life,  and  in  the  name  of  their  divine  Master  they 
proceeded  to  break  it  to  them. 

It  was  a  sudden  transition  from  the  old  dispensation 


A  PASTORATE  OF  TWENTY  YEARS.      253 

to  the  new.  The  advancing  column  of  the  incoming 
race  trod  hard  upon  the  heels  of  the  nation  super 
seded.  Every  steamer  which  ascended  the  Mississippi 
was  loaded  to  the  guards  with  settlers  and  adven 
turers,  seeking  the  promised  land  in  the  new  North 
west.  This  tidal  wave  was  largely  composed  of  a 
restless  population  much  like  the  sand-burrs,  which 
temporarily  hold  the  shifting  soil  until  they  are  re 
placed  by  permanent  vegetation.  Thus  very  many 
of  these  first  arrivals  floated  westward  with  succeed 
ing  years  to  again  encounter  the  hardships  and  enjoy 
the  excitements  of  pioneer  life. 

Now,  however,  they  beheld  in  every  crossroad  an 
embryo  town  ;  in  every  collection  of  shanties  a  future 
metropolis  ;  and  in  every  barren  sand  bank  a  fertile 
plantation.  Their  paper  cities,  laid  out  upon  the  open 
prairie,  were  soon  to  become  commercial  marts,  while 
visions  of  agricultural  wealth,  manufacturing  activity, 
and  political  preferment  danced  like  the  mists  of  the 
morning  before  their  enchanted  vision. 

The  German  and  Irish  races  succeeded  the  Cana 
dian  French,  the  shiftless  white  man  supplanted  the 
shiftless  half-breed,  and  the  Anglo-Saxon  took  the 
place  of  the  Dakota.  War  songs  and  scalp  dances 
gave  place  to  church  bells  and  Sunday-school  hymns, 
while  the  stone  wayside  shrines  of  the  Dakotas  were 
replaced  by  the  steepled  temples  of  Jehovah. 


254         TWO  VOLUNTEEE  MISSIONARIES. 

Around  the  mission  station  at  Oak  Grove  a  rural 
population  speedily  became  located,  and  at  the  Falls 
of  St.  Anthony  an  embryo  city  sprang  up.  Religious 
services  were  held  in  the  new  town  by  the  Rev.  G.  H. 
Pond,  in  the  house  of  his  friend  Colonel  Stevens  at 
first,  and  afterward  in  other  places,  as  opportunity 
offered.  On  the  twenty-second  of  May,  1853,  he 
organized  the  first  Christian  church  in  Minneapolis 
proper,  it  being  the  earliest  church  organization  west 
of  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony. 

At  Oak  Grove,  which  now  assumed  the  name  of 
Bloomington,  a  church  was  soon  organized  consisting 
of  members  widely  differing  in  their  former  church 
connections  and  preferences.  This  church,  as  well  as 
the  one  at  Shakopee,  was  organized  as  a  Presbyterian 
church  although  both  pastors  and  many  of  the  mem 
bers  were  by  early  training  Congregationalists. 

It  might  have  been  supposed  that  a  church  formed 
in  this  way  would  have  proved  discordant ;  but  under 
the  wise  leadership  of  its  pastor,  whose  splendid  exec 
utive  abilities  all  acknowledged,  the  church  was  sin 
gularly  harmonious  and  became  the  banner  church  in 
Christian  giving  within  its  Presbytery. 

In  1854  Mr.  Pond  represented  the  Presbytery  of 
St.  Paul  in  the  General  Assembly.  When  he  returned 
he  was  accompanied  by  the  second  Mrs.  G.  H.  Pond, 
formerly  Mrs.  Robert  Hopkins,  who  thenceforth 


A  PASTOEATE  OF  TWENTY  TEAMS.      255 

shared  the  toils  and  privations  and  lightened  the 
burdens  of  his  life.  Her  three  children  added  to  his 
seven  made  a  family  of  ten,  and  to  this  number  six 
little  ones  were  afterward  added,  making  in  all 
sixteen. 

In  the  year  1856  a  church  building  was  completed 
and  dedicated.  It  was  built  and  paid  for  without  out 
side  assistance,  a  large  part  of  the  expense  being 
borne  by  the  pastor  from  his  slender  means.  Faith 
fully,  wisely,  and  well  Mr.  Pond  ministered  to  this 
church  for  a  period  of  twenty  years. 

His  large  family  was  governed  with  parental  kind 
ness  but  with  military  precision,  and  all  around  him 
were  taught  by  precept  and  example  to  value,  first  of 
all,  things  spiritual. 

His  life  knew  much  privation  and  hardship,  for  his 
family  was  large  and  his  income  small,  and  his  gifts 
to  his  Master's  work  often  more  than  he  could  well 
afford.  His  farm,  on  which  he  depended  for  a  part  of 
his  support,  was  at  that  time  unproductive,  and  a  man 
of  less  ability  and  energy  would  have  failed. 

He  was  not  exempt  from  family  affliction.  His 
second  son,  a  boy  of  rare  promise,  lost  a  limb  by  the 
accidental  discharge  of  a  gun  when  about  fourteen 
years  of  age.  Having  determined  to  enter  the  gospel 
ministry,  he  went  to  Lane  Seminary  after  graduating 
with  honor  from  Marietta  College.  Just  one  month 


256          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

after  entering  the  seminary  he  died,  all  alone,  among 
strangers,  of  Asiatic  cholera.  This  was  one  of  the 
great  afflictions  of  Mr.  Pond's  life.  The  entire  ex 
pense  of  his  son's  education  he  had  borne  alone. 

The  burdens  of  his  large  parish  bore  more  heavily 
on  him  than  they  would  have  borne  on  many,  for 
every  duty  was  discharged  with  a  spirit  of  rigid  self- 
denial  and  self-sacrifice  into  which  the  element  of  per 
sonal  preference  never  entered.  No  one  ever  more 
fully  accepted  the  apostle's  statement,  "  Ye  are  not 
your  own,  for  ye  are  bought  with  a  price." 

After  he  had  resigned  his  pastorate  he  continued 
to  bear  many  of  the  burdens  of  the  pastoral  office, 
being  apparently  unable  to  lay  them  down.  It  is  hard 
to  realize  the  arduous  character  of  these  burdens 
so  cheerfully  borne  during  the  long  period  of  his 
pastorate. 

His  parish  was  large,  covering  more  than  fifty 
square  miles  of  territory,  in  which  there  was  for  a 
long  time  no  other  Protestant  church  organization. 
It  was  peopled  by  an  exclusively  rural  and  there 
fore  scattered  population.  Church  services  and  two 
weekly  prayer  meetings,  six  miles  apart,  were  sus 
tained  during  the  heats  of  summer  and  the  severest 
blizzards  of  winter.  Services  once  appointed  were 
never  for  any  cause  omitted  or  postponed.  Every 
$uch  service  required  on  the  part  of  the  pastor  a 


A  PASTORATE   OF  TWENTY  YEAfiS.      257 

journey  of  from  two  to  six  miles  across  a  Minnesota 
prairie.  In  addition  to  this  work  within  his  own  par 
ish,  he  for  many  years  preached  regularly  at  Minne- 
baha,  Richfield,  and  Minneapolis. 

He  was  very  thorough  and  painstaking  in  his  pulpit 
preparations,  and  no  field  of  Christian  labor  was  ever 
more  thoroughly  cultivated  than  was  his. 

He  also  conducted  the  affairs  of  a  large  farm,  doing 
much  of  the  work  with  his  own  hands.  During  the 
twenty  years  of  his  pastorate  he  had  but  two  vaca 
tions,  of  a  few  weeks  each,  on  both  of  which  occasions 
he  was  a  delegate  to  the  General  Assembly.  It  is  not 
strange  that  these  arduous  labors,  continued  for  so 
long  a  period,  somewhat  prematurely  wore  out  his 
magnificent  constitution.  The  exposure  and  privation 
of  his  nineteen  years  of  service  among  the  Dakotas 
and  the  heavy  burdens  of  his  twenty  years  of  labor 
among  the  white  settlers  gradually  undermined  his 
strength,  until  not  even  his  indomitable  will  could 
longer  sustain  him  in  his  ceaseless  labors. 

March  26,  1877,  he  wrote  as  follows  :  — 

Dear  Brother, — I  begin  to  feel  now  as  if  I  were  nearing  the  end. 

Yesterday  I  turned  over  my  dear  old  Sabbath-school  to  Mr.  C 

and  shall  not  again  have  a  place  in  it.  This  school  work  is  my  last 
public  work.  I  felt  obliged  to  end  off  on  account  of  personal 
infirmities  by  reason  of  which  I  could  not  do  it  any  longer. 

I  have  become  old  very  young.  A  candle  burns  out  quicker  in 
a  current,  and  life  seems  to  be  like  a  candle.  My  life  has  been  in 


258         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

a  current.  As  I  remember,  a  few  years  ago  I  used  to  prepare  my 
self  the  best  I  could  with  earnest  study  to  preach  on  the  Sabbath, 
superintend  two  Sabbath-schools,  four  miles  apart,  attend  Wednes 
day  afternoon  or  evening  meeting  at  the  Ferry  and  Thursday  on 
this  prairie,  and  attend  to  my  affairs  at  home  comparatively  with 
out  weariness. 

Now  I  have  refused  to  take  a  class  in  one  Sabbath-school  because 
I  do  not  feel  as  if  I  could  do  the  work  of  a  teacher,  though  I  do 
nothing  at  home!  I  am  burned  well  down  in  the  socket.  Well, 
I  do  not  know  as  I  am  sorry  to  be  near  the  close  of  life  on  earth. 
I  only  regret  that  I  have  not  made  a  better  job  of  it.  Still  I  should 
not  be  forward  to  undertake  to  repeat.  It  would  be  easy  to  make 
a  worse.  I  could  hardly  hope  to  do  better,  though  much  better 
would  fall  far  below  perfection. 

August  16  following,  he  wrote  again :  — 

I  am  glad  we  have  hope  of  a  better  life  than  we  have  had  in 
this  world,  though  we  have  no  cause  to  complain  of  this.  With 
us  it  has  been  a  prosperous  life.  As  compared  with  the  lives  of 
many  of  our  acquaintances,  it  has  been  good  and  satisfactory,  but 
that  has  been  much  owing  to  the  fact  that  we  did  not  expect  much 
from  this  life  except  as  it  relates  to  the  one  for  which  we  look  after 
its  close.  With  us  it  is  almost  sundown.  We  shall  soon  be  gone 
and  forgotten,  and  matters  will  go  on  as  they  did  before  us  and  as 
they  have  while  we  have  been  here.  Our  children  we  shall  leave 
with  ample  means  to  obtain  the  comforts  of  life,  if  they  are  virtu 
ous,  industrious,  and  frugal.  We  shall  leave  them  hoping  that 
they  will  live  religiously,  and  finally  reach  heaven.  This  is  a  great 
comfort. 

As  regards  our  worldly  affairs,  we  can  see  many  things  that  we 
would  alter,  but  if  we  were  to  fuss  at  them  a  thousand  years,  T  do 
not  think  we  should  get  them  fixed  just  right.  I  am  persuaded 
that  I  shall  not  find  the  resting  place  here  either  for  the  body  or  the 


A  PAS  TOE  ATE  OF  TWENTY  YEABS.      259 

mind.  "We  look  for  rest  after  the  life  is  over.  The  time  will  soon 
be  along.  Our  efforts  to  fix  things  here  are  about  like  fixing  for 
the  night  or  for  a  day  of  rain  when  traveling  in  an  uninhabited 
country. 

As  regards  the  foundation  of  our  hopes  to  which  you  allude,  I 
have  never  in  my  life  had  much  doubt  that  they  were  sure.  My 
only  doubt  was  whether  I  was  on  them,  and  even  of  this  I  have 
not  felt  much  hesitancy  these  forty-five  years  or  more.  My  con 
fidence  has  given  direction  to  my  life  work.  It  has  been  a  constant 
support  and  solace  to  me  thus  far,  and  poor  as  I  am  in  character 
and  life-doing,  I  fully  expect  to  reach  heaven  through  the  grace 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  I  expect  much  on  the  grounds  of  his 
work  as  Mediator;  if  I  am  finally  disappointed,  it  will  be  a  sad 
disappointment. 

I  do  not  expect  that  you  and  I  shall  meet  many  more  times  in 
this  life,  but  I  do  expect  to  meet  you  in  a  better  world  —  in  a  life 
to  which  this  has  been  a  preface,  in  which  we  shall  feel  but  little 
interest  except  as  it  relates  to  that.  That  life  will  occupy  our 
attention  as  a  book  does  after  we  leave  the  preface  and  enter  upon 
the  body  of  it. 

In  October  following  Mr.  Pond  attended  the  meeting 
of  the  Synod  of  Minnesota  and  took  part  in  the  de 
liberations  of  that  body.  He  preached  for  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Breed,  of  the  House  of  Hope,  the  last  sermon 
which  he  ever  delivered.  During  the  meeting  of  the 
Synod,  Mr.  Riggs  says,  "He  greatly  entertained  the 
meeting  and  the  people  of  St.  Paul  with  his  terse  and 
graphic  presentation  of  some  of  the  Lord's  workings 
in  behalf  of  the  Dakotas." 

Early  in  the  following  January  his  infirmities  cul- 


260         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

minated  in  a  lung  trouble,  and  it  soon  became  evi 
dent  that  the  summons  was  coming  and  the  messenger 
near.  His  brother  Samuel  was  sent  for,  and  as  the 
latter  entered  the  room  he  said,  u  So  we  go  to  see  each 
other  die."  A  few  months  before,  this  brother  had 
been  apparently  at  the  point  of  death,  and  this  re 
mark  was  an  allusion  to  that  occasion. 

On  the  twentieth  of  January,  1878,  he  passed 
through  the  gates  into  the  Celestial  City,  to  go  no 
more  out. 

The  Rev.  D.  R.  Breed,  of  St.  Paul,  conducted  the 
funeral  services.  The  entire  community  attended  as 
mourners  at  the  interment  of  him  to  whose  faithful 
ness  and  zeal  they  had  been  so  deeply  indebted,  and 
none  perhaps  were  more  sincere  in  their  demonstra 
tions  of  sorrow  than  the  little  company  of  Dakotas 
to  whom  he  had  been  a  more  than  father. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

PASTORATE   AT    SHAKOPEE   AND   THE   RELEASE. 

SAMUEL  POND,  who  had  married  a  schoolmate 
of  his  early  years,  Miss  Rebecca  Smith,  re 
turned  to  the  land  of  the  Dakotas  previous  to  the 
removal  of  the  Indians.  The  summer  of  1853,  which 
witnessed  the  departure  of  the  natives,  also  brought 
many  white  people.  A  town  was  soon  built  upon 
the  land  adjoining  the  mission  house,  and  in  a  short 
time  a  church  organization  was  formed.  The  new 
church  at  first  consisted  of  about  ten  members,  mostly 
women. 

The  situation  at  Shakopee  was  a  peculiar  one. 
The  population  was  even  more  unstable  than  in  most 
other  western  towns,  and  very  few  of  the  early  set 
tlers  became  permanent  residents.  .There  was  also 
a  large  and  vigorous  infidel  element  which  made  itself 
felt  in  many  ways.  These  facts  proved  serious  ob 
stacles  to  successful  church  work  at  Shakopee. 

Services  were  first  held  in  a  hall  called  ' '  Holmes 
Hall,"  until  it  was  more  profitably  utilized  as  a  barber 
shop  on  the  Sabbath,  and  then  meetings  were  held  in 
unfinished  dwellings  wherever  a  place  could  be  found. 

261 


262          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

At  first  Mr.  Pond  preached  sitting,  on  account  of 
his  crushed  ankle,  but  he  recovered  from  this  after 
a  time. 

In  1856  a  church  building  was  erected  entirely  at 
the  expense  of  the  pastor  and  his  congregation,  the 
former  of  course  bearing  proportionately  much  the 
larger  share.  That  church  cost  Mr.  Pond  more  money 
than  the  house  which  afforded  him  a  home  for  more 
than  forty  years.  The  amount  thus  contributed  repre 
sented  the  savings  of  many  years  of  rigid  self-denial. 

For  thirteen  years  he  served  this  church  as  pastor, 
diligently  laboring  by  day  for  the  support  of  his 
family  and  often  toiling  the  greater  part  of  the  night 
in  pulpit  preparation.  As  some  slight  indication  of 
the  arduous  character  of  this  pastorate,  it  might  be 
mentioned  that  he  was  called  to  attend  more  than 
two  hundred  funerals.  The  greater  part  of  this  time 
a  second  service  was  held  in  a  neighboring  town  in 
addition  to  the  home  service.  If  the  church  did  not 
reach  u  self-support,"  as  it  is  termed,  it  rejoiced  in  the 
happy  equivalent  of  a  self-supporting  pastor.  Mr. 
Pond  took  but  one  vacation  in  the  period  named, 
being  absent  from  his  pulpit  at  that  time  a  little  more 
than  a  month.  For  his  services  he  received  from  his 
people  never  much  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  per 
annum,  and  sometimes  less.  For  a  small  part  of  this 
time  he  received  $250  a  year  from  the  Home  Mission 


PASTORATE  AT  SHAKOPEE.      263 

Board,  but  declined  reappointment,  supposing  that  the 
sum  thus  spent  might  be  applied  in  a  more  needy  and 
possibly  more  promising  field. 

In  the  political  excitement  of  1861,  and  the  war 
which  followed,  he  took  a  painful  interest.  Abraham 
Lincoln  had  no  warmer  supporter  in  life,  no  sincerer 
mourner  in  death,  than  he.  In  children  he  always  took 
a  special  interest  and  undertook  the  early  education  of 
all  his  own  children  and  several  of  his  grandchildren. 
He  had  a  natural  antipathy  to  pecuniary  obligations  of 
every  nature,  and  never  contracted  a  debt  of  any  kind 
or  bought  a  thing  for  which  he  had  not  the  present 
means  of  paying. 

Mr.  Pond's  ministry  at  Shakopee,  as  he  justly  re 
marked  in  his  farewell  sermon,  was  no  sinecure,  but 
the  work  was  one  in  which  he  delighted  and  very 
reluctantly  laid  down,  influenced  by  considerations 
which  it  is  not  necessary  to  give  in  detail  here. 

From  this  period,  1866,  changes  gradual  but  great 
mark  the  lapse  of  years.  The  following  year  the 
firstborn  of  the  family,  like  her  sainted  mother, 
crowned  a  lovely  and  inspiring  life  by  a  happy  end. 
One  by  one,  as  the  years  went  by,  the  remaining 
children  sought  homes  of  their  own. 

The  second  Mrs.  Pond  was  domestic  in  her  tastes, 
a  pattern  of  industry  and  economy,  and  faithful  in  the 
discharge  of  every  duty  which  lay  in  her  path.  She 


264          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

was  much  attached  to  her  church,  was  always  much 
interested  in  The  Missionary  Herald  and  the  cause 
it  represents,  and  ever  pursued  the  narrow  path  of 
quiet  home  duties  toward  the  Celestial  City.  She  set 
her  house  in  order,  prepared  everything  for  the  mor 
row,  and  laid  herself  down  to  her  last  rest  at  the  age 
of  eighty-two.  A  bookmark,  her  last  receipt  from  the 
American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis 
sions,  was  found  after  her  death  marking  the  place 
in  Baxter's  Saint's  Rest  where  the  description  of  the 
rest  was  laid  aside  for  the  Rest  itself. 

The  old  mission  house,  the  hallowed  scene  of  so 
many  toils  and  privations,  and  also  of  so  many  pleas 
ant  memories,  has  been  gradually  deserted  until  its 
builder  now  alone  remains  within  its  walls.  Gradu 
ally  increasing  deafness  has  in  great  measure  inca 
pacitated  him  for  social  intercourse  and  public  minis 
trations,  but  books,  which  were  his  chief  delight  in 
youth,  have  lost  none  of  their  power  to  interest 
in  advancing  age ;  especially  is  this  true  of  the  Book 
of  books. 

He  has  done  much  literary  work  of  permanent  value 
during  these  last  years,  including  a  work  descriptive 
of  the  Dakotas  in  their  primitive  state.  This  work  is 
soon  to  be  published. 

By  way  of  recreation  in  his  leisure  hours,  he  care 
fully  compared  the  Septuagint  and  Vulgate  versions 


PASTORATE  AT  SHAKOPEE.  265 

of  the  Old  Testament,  noting  omissions  and  varia 
tions,  and  his  last  published  article  was  upon  the 
chronology  of  the  Septuagint.1 

He  was  never  idle.  The  active  energy  which  dis 
tinguished  his  youthful  years  no  less  marks  his  ad 
vancing  age.  His  mind  is  as  clear,  his  judgment  as 
sound,  and  his  mental  vision  as  keen  at  eighty-three 
as  they  were  at  thirty-three,  and  he  displays  no  trace 
of  the  mental  failure  so  common  in  advanced  age. 
His  memory  is  still  accurate  and  retentive  as  in 
former  days. 

And  now  as  the  lengthening  shadows  of  life's  even 
ing  are  gathering  around  the  hoary  head  whose  years 
have  already  exceeded  the  psalmist's  limit,  we  can 
look  back  with  unmingled  pleasure  upon  the  retro 
spect  of  a  successful  life.  Whatever  of  toil  or  pri 
vation  a  life  may  have  contained,  if  such  life  be 
unproductive  of  good  results,  we  cannot  call  it  suc 
cessful.  To  those  who  fail  to  recognize  the  fact  that 
there  must  of  necessity  be  a  period  of  sowing  in 
order  that  there  may  be  a  season  of  reaping,  the 
twenty  years  of  self-denying  toil  given  by  these  early 
missionaries  to  the  Dakotas  may  seem  well-nigh 
wasted ;  but  those  years  of  apparently  unproductive 
sowing  were  essential  to  the  production  of  the  abun* 
dant  harvest  of  later  years. 

1  Printed  in  The  Herald  and  Presbyter  the  week  of  his  death. 


266         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

More  than  fifty-seven  years  have  elapsed  since  the 
mission  was  commenced  among  the  Dakotas.  Of 
the  natives  who  were  then  grown  to  manhood,  not 
one  is  now  alive.  Of  the  men  of  that  devoted  band 
who  gave  the  strength  of  their  manhood,  the  best  of 
their  lives  to  the  pioneer  work  among  these  barbarous 
heathen,  Mr.  S.  W.  Pond,  the  first  to  arrive  with  his 
brother,  is  the  sole  survivor. 

He  has  seen  the  wild  and  savage  bands  of  Indians 
among  whom  he  labored  half  a  century  ago  become 
practically  a  civilized  people.  Those  who  sang  the 
wild  measures  of  the  war  song  and  danced  nightly 
around  the  gory  scalps  of  their  hereditary  foes  now 
delight  in  the  sweet  melody  of  the  songs  of  Zion, 
among  which  may  be  found  those  his  pen  indited  in 
the  dark  days  of  fifty  years  ago.  Many  hundreds  of 
the  Dakotas  earn  an  honest  subsistence  by  the  various 
pursuits  of  civilized  life,  and  are  humble  but  sincere 
members  of  Christ's  Church  on  earth.  Thousands 
have  learned  to  read  and  write  that  language  which 
the  first  missionaries  so  laboriously,  but  so  success 
fully,  reduced  to  a  written  form. 

The  unpaid  labors  of  volunteer  missionaries  of  the 
American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis 
sions  have  done  more  to  solve  the  Indian  question, 
so  far  as  the  Dakotas  are  concerned,  than  has  been 
accomplished  by  all  the  varied  and  costly  experiments 
of  the  general  government. 


PA8TOEATE  AT  SHAKOPEE.  267 

With  S.  W.  Pond,  the  last  survivor  of  a  heroic 
band,  the  sun  of  life  is  nearing  the  western  horizon  ; 
its  level  rays  are  casting  hourly  deeper  shadows. 
The  beloved  companions  and  fellow  laborers  of  former 
years  have  joined  the  company  of  those  who  rest 
from  their  labors.  With  undimmed  faith,  he  writes, 
as  in  the  "  border  land  "  :  — 

"And  when  or  how  my  longing  soul 

Shall  enter  into  rest, 
I  with  my  heavenly  Father  leave, 
"Whose  times  and  ways  are  best." 

A  little  more  than  a  month  after  the  foregoing  was 
written,  the  subject  of  it  was  called  hence  to  the 
grand  Reunion.  He  had  planned  much  work  for  the 
coming  year.  He  had  commenced  a  translation  of 
some  Dakota  legendary  tales,  taken  down  from  the 
lips  of  the  Dakotas  years  before.  He  also  proposed 
to  attend  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Dakota  Mission ; 
but  the  Master  had  planned  otherwise. 

A  severe  attack  of  pneumonia  terminated  his  life 
on  the  twelfth  of  December,  1891,  after  a  brief  illness 
of  less  than  five  days. 

Dr.  Neill,  of  McAllister  College,  the  oldest  surviv 
ing  friend  of  his  earlier  years,  conducted  the  funeral 
services. 

Dr.  Webster,  Dr.  Donaldson,  and  the  Rev.  S.  L.  B. 


268         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

Speare,  of   Minneapolis,  also  participated.     The  last 
hymn  sung  was  one  composed  by  himself :  — 

Deck  not  my  tomb  with  flowers  that  fade, 

Frail  emblems  of  mortality, 
And  when  my  dust  in  dust  is  laid, 

Sing  no  sad  dirges  over  me. 

With  faith  that  banishes  all  fear, 

Remember  Him  who  died  to  save, 
And  thus,  without  a  sigh  or  tear, 

Consign  my  body  to  the  grave. 

And,  looking  on  my  cold  remains, 

Behold  them  with  an  eye  of  faith, 
And  sing,  in  cheerful,  joyful  strains, 

Of  Him  who,  dying,  conquered  death. 

Without  misgiving  lay  me  down, 

To  wait  the  resurrection  day, 
For  Christ  will  not  forget  his  own, 

Though  heaven  and  earth  should  pass  away. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

SOME   THOUGHTS    IN    CONCLUSION. 

THE  path  of  duty  lies  for  different  individuals 
in  different  and  often  widely  diverse  directions. 
For  some  it  seems  to  wind  hither  and  thither  through 
green  pastures  and  beside  still  waters.  Others  find 
their  allotted  field  of  labor  in  crowded  cities  and  busy 
thoroughfares.  Still  others  are  called  to  the  toils  and 
hardships  of  the  pioneer's  lot,  and  to  face  new  and 
untried  difficulties  in  the  physical,  the  mental,  or  the 
social  world.  To  this  latter  class  belonged  S.  W.  and 
G.  H.  Pond. 

The  Master  chose  for  them  as  they  would  have 
chosen  for  themselves,  and  they  were  required  to  build 
on  no  other  man's  foundation.  Their  work  was  essen 
tially  a  pioneer  work  from  the  time  they  left  their  New 
England  home  until  their  earthly  work  was  completed. 
Theirs  was  the  first  permanent  mission  to  the  Da- 
kotas  ;  theirs  the  first  citizen-settler's  cabin,  school- 
house,,  and  house  of  worship  in  the  section  where  they 
located  ;  theirs  was  the  first  vocabulary  and  transla 
tion  in  the  Dakota  language,  and  the  first  pupil  taught 
to  read  and  write  his  own  language  in  the  entire  Sioux 


270         TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

nation.  At  Oak  Grove  and  Shakopee  they  were 
pioneers  and  alone  in  their  mission  work,  the  earliest 
settlers,  and  the  first  to  preach  the  gospel  to  white 
people.  Gr.  H.  Pond  was  one  of  the  pioneer  legisla 
tors  of  the  territory  and  the  first  to  preach  the  gospel 
in  the  city  called  Minneapolis.  Furthermore,  he  was 
the  editor  of  the  first  religious  paper  published  in 
Minnesota.  Theirs  was  the  spirit  of  consecration 
which  gives  direction  to  life,  and  while  it  often  led 
into  discomfort,  suffering,  and  peril,  they  never  for  one 
moment  regretted  the  steps  taken  or  desired  to  retrace 
them. 

They  had  some  of  the  spirit  of  their  Puritan  ances 
tors  so  eloquently  described  by  Macaulay :  "  Their 
palaces  were  houses  not  made  with  hands  ;  their  dia 
dems,  crowns  of  glory  which  should  never  fade  away. 
On  the  rich  and  the  eloquent,  on  nobles  and  priests, 
they  looked  down  with  contempt,  for  they  esteemed 
themselves  rich  in  a  more  precious  treasure,  and  elo 
quent  in  a  more  sublime  language,  nobles  by  right 
of  an  earlier  creation,  and  priests  by  the  imposition  of 
a  mightier  hand." 

The  work  which  they  undertook  to  perform  few 
could  have  done,  and  fewer  still  would  have  cared  to 
do.  Their  views  of  duty  brought  them  into  daily  and 
hourly  contact  with  barbarism  in  its  rudest,  most 
repellent  form.  They  were  brought  into  the  irnme- 


SOME   THOUGHTS  II?  CONCLUSION'.       271 

diate  presence  of  degraded  humanity,  as  it  were,  in 
the  nude.  No  glamour  of  distance  lent  enchantment 
to  the  filthy,  degraded  beings  for  whose  temporal  and 
eternal  welfare  they  labored.  It  was  hard  to  recog 
nize  the  faint  possibility  of  a  Saviour's  restored  image 
in  the  fallen  men  and  women  among  whom  their  lot 
was  cast.  The  unfallen  man  lay  so  deeply  hidden 
beneath  the  accumulated  filth  of  ages  that  nothing  but 
the  eye  of  faith  could  discern  his  possible  presence. 

For  themselves,  these  men  expected  nothing  in  this 
present  life.  The  little  cabin  on  the  eastern  shore  of 
Lake  Calhoun  was  the  only  home  its  builders  ever 
expected  to  possess  on  earth.  They  came,  as  they 
then  supposed,  "to  live  and  die  'mong  savage  men," 
unless  it  should  please  their  Master  to  turn  the  sav 
ages  around  them  to  himself.  When  that  little  cabin 
was  built,  there  were,  besides  the  missionaries  and  their 
brethren  among  the  Ojibways,  no  Protestant  Christians 
in  the  whole  territory,  save  one  woman. 

The  cabin  by  the  lake  long  ago  disappeared  from 
sight,  and  few  there  are  of  the  175,000  souls  living 
within  the  limits  of  the  city  now  growing  up  around 
it  who  are  aware  that  it  ever  existed.  But  the  work 
commenced  in  that  lowly  hut  will  go  forward,  ever 
widening  until  it  is  completed. 

In  my  youth  I  often  visited  a  beautiful  and  fertile 
meadow,  surrounded,  like  the  garden  of  Eden,  by 


272          TWO  VOLUNTEER  MISSIONARIES. 

streams  of  living  water.  Here  and  there  upon  the 
green-carpeted  surface  of  this  meadow,  old  elms 
reared  their  lofty  heads  in  fearless  defiance  of  wintry 
blasts  and  springtime  torrents.  The  birds  of  heaven 
built  habitations  in  their  branches  and  the  cattle 
sought  the  fragrant  coolness  of  their  shade.  One  by 
one  those  ancient  trees  have  fallen  until  but  two  or 
three  now  remain.  Like  those  giant  trees  were  once 
the  "  pioneers  of  Minnesota  "  and  like  them  have  the 
pioneers  passed  away. 

For  a  full  knowledge  of  the  results  of  the  labors  of 
the  Pond  brothers  and  their  associates,  briefly  sketched 
in  the  foregoing  pages,  we  must  await  the  revelations 
of  that  country  where  they  now  "behold  the  King  in 
his  beauty  "  ;  where  the  voices  which  once  sang  Dakota 
war  songs  now  sing  "the  song  of  the  redeemed"; 
and  they  who  toiled  and  suffered,  met  and  parted,  on 
the  banks  of  the  turbid  Minnesota,  meet  once  more  by 
the  crvstal  waters  of  the  River  of  Life. 


APPENDIX. 


AN-PE-TU-SA-PA-WIN. 

A  LEGEND  OF  THE  DAKOTAS. 

WHEN  winter's  icy  reign  is  o'er 
And  spring  has  set  the  waters  free, 

I  love  to  listen  to  the  roar 
Of  thy  wild  waves,  St.  Anthony. 

I  love  to  watch  the  rapid  course 

Of  the  mad  surges  at  my  feet, 
And  listen  to  the  tumult  hoarse 

Which  shakes  me  in  my  rocky  seat. 

For,  gathered  here  from  lake  and  glen, 
The  turbid  waters,  deep  and  black, 

With  foaming  rush  and  thundering  din, 
Pour  down  the  mighty  cataract. 

Entranced  with  visions  strange  and  new, 
The  'wildering  scene  amazed  I  scan, 

As  with  a  wild  delight  I  view 
Nature  unmarred  by  hand  of  man. 

But  go  through  all  this  world  so  broad, 
Go  search  through  mountain,  vale,  and  plain : 

Each  spot  where  human  foot  e'er  trod 
Is  linked  with  memory  of  pain. 

273 


274  APPENDIX. 

A  sight  these  rugged  rocks  have  seen 
Which  scarce  a  rock  unmoved  might  see; 

On  the  hard  hearts  of  savage  men 
That  scene  was  graved  indelibly. 

And  though  since  then  long  years  have  fled 

And  generations  passed  away, 
Its  memory  dies  not  with  the  dead, 

The  record  yields  not  to  decay. 

No  theme  of  love  inspires  my  song, 
Such  as  might  please  a  maiden's  ear; 

I  sing  of  hate  and  woe  and  wrong, 
Of  vengeance  strange  and  wild  despair. 

Unskilled  to  fashion  polished  lays, 
I  sing  no  song  of  mirth  and  glee; 

A  tale  of  grief  in  homely  phrase 
I  tell  you  as  'twas  told  to  me. 

Long  e'er  the  white  man's  eye  had  seen 
These  flower-decked  prairies,  fair  and  wide, 

Long  e'er  the  white  man's  bark  had  been 
Borne  on  the  Mississippi's  tide, 

So  long  ago,  Dakotas  say, 

An-pe-tu-sa-pa-win  was  born. 
Her  eyes  beheld  these  scenes  so  gay 

First  opening  on  life's  rosy  morn. 

I  of  her  childhood  nothing  know, 
And  nothing  will  presume  to  tell 

Of  her  extraction,  high  or  low, 
Or  whether  fared  she  ill  or  well. 

I  know  she  was  an  Indian  maid 
And  fared  as  Indian  maidens  do; 

In  morning  light  and  evening  shade 
Hardship  and  danger  ever  knew. 


APPENDIX.  275 

The  flowing  river  she  could  swim, 

She  learned  the  light  canoe  to  guide: 
In  it  could  cross  the  broadest  stream 

Or  o'er  the  lake  securely  glide. 

She  learned  to  tan  the  deer's  tough  hide, 

The  parchment  tent  could  well  prepare; 
The  bison's  shaggy  skin  she  dyed 

With  art  grotesque  in  colors  fair. 

With  knife  of  bone  she  carved  her  food, 

Fuel  with  axe  of  stone  procured; 
Could  fire  extract  from  flint  or  wood 

To  rudest  savage  life  inured. 

In  kettle  frail  of  birchen  bark 

She  boiled  her  food  with  heated  stones. 
The  slippery  fish  from  coverts  dark 

She  drew  with  hook  of  jointed  bones. 

The  prickly  porcupine's  sharp  quills 

In  many  a  quaint  device  she  wove  — 
Fair  gifts  for  those  she  highest  prized, 

Tokens  of  friendship  or  of  love. 

Oft  on  the  flower-enameled  green, 

Midst  troops  of  youthful  maidens  gay, 
With  bounding  footstep  she  was  seen, 

Intent  to  bear  the  prize  away. 

The  Chippewa  she  learned  to  fear, 
And  round  his  scalp  she  danced  with  glee; 

From  his  keen  shaft  and  cruel  spear 
Oft  was  she  fain  to  hide  or  flee. 

Thus  she,  with  heart  now  sad,  now  gay, 

Did  many  a  wild  adventure  prove, 
Till  laughing  childhood  passed  away, 

Succeeded  by  the  time  of  love. 


276  APPENDIX. 

Now  wedded  to  the  man  she  loved, 
Fondling  her  firstborn  infant  boy, 

Her  trusting  heart  the  fullness  proved 
Of  nuptial  and  maternal  joy. 

Thus  did  her  heart  with  love  o'erflow 
And  beat  with  highest  joy  elate ; 

But  higher  joy  brings  deeper  woe, 
And  love  deceived  may  turn  to  hate. 

He  whose  smile  more  than  life  she  prized 
Sought  newer  love  and  fresher  charms, 

While  she,  forsaken  and  despised, 
Beheld  him  in  a  rival's  arms. 

Whate'er  she  thought  she  little  said; 

No  tear  bedimrned  her  flashing  eye; 
Her  faithful  tongue  no  thought  betrayed, 

Her  bosom  heaved  no  telltale  sigh. 

Long  had  she  hid  her  anguish  keen 
When  on  yon  green  and  sloping  shore 

The  wild  Dakotas'  tents  were  seen 
With  strange  devices  painted  o'er. 

An-pe-tu-sa-pa-win  is  there, 

Her  wan  cheeks  tinged  with  colors  gay, 
And  her  loved  boy  wears  in  his  hair 

The  tokens  of  a  gala  day. 

Why  braids  she  her  neglected  hair, 
As  If  it  were  her  bridal  day? 

Why  has  she  decked  her  boy  so  fair 
With  shining  paint  and  feathers  gay? 

Seel    She  has  seized  her  light  canoe! 

She  grasps  in  haste  the  slender  oar, 
Has  placed  her  infant  in  the  bow, 

And  thus  in  silence  leaves  the  shore. 


APPENDIX.  277 


With  steady  hand  and  tearless  eye 
She  urges  on  that  frail  canoe. 

Eight  onward  to  those  falls  so  high, 
Right  onward  to  the  gulf  below. 

Her  frantic  friends  in  vain  besought; 

She  calmly  went  her  fearful  way, 
Nor  turned  her  head  nor  heeded  aught 

Of  all  that  friend  or  foe  might  say. 

All  quake  with  horror;  she  alone 
Betrays  no  sign  of  grief  or  fear. 

With  gentle  word  and  soothing  tone 
She  strives  the  timid  child  to  cheer. 

Amazed  the  awe-struck  husband  stood. 

A  father's  feelings  checked  his  breath; 
His  son  is  on  that  raging  flood, 

So  full  of  life  —  so  near  to  death. 

The  quiv'ring  bark  like  lightning  flies, 
Urged  by  the  waves  and  bending  oar; 

No  swifter  could  she  seek  the  prize 
Were  death  behind  and  life  before. 

The  fatal  brink  is  just  at  hand, 
And  thitherward  she  holds  the  bow. 

See  eager  Death  exulting  stand! 
No  power  on  earth  can  save  her  now. 

And  now  she  raises  her  death  song 
Above  the  tumult,  shrill  and  clear, 

Yet  may  she  not  the  strain  prolong, 
The  verge  of  death  is  all  too  near. 

The  song  has  ceased.    The  dark  abyss 
Swallows  with  haste  its  willing  prey. 

The  foaming  waters  round  them  hiss  — 
Mother  and  child  have  passed  away. 


278  APPENDIX. 

The  fragments  of  the  shattered  bark 
The  boiling  waves  to  view  restore, 

But  she  and  hers,  in  caverns  dark, 
Find  quiet  rest  foreverraore. 

They  say  that  still  that  song  is  heard 
Above  the  mighty  torrent's  roar, 

When  trees  are  by  the  night  wind  stirred 
And  darkness  broods  on  stream  and  shore. 

OAK  GROVE,  1850. 


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